The Aftermath
by Labyrinth of Lies
Summary: The war was over, but not on a positive note. Tanner had killed Brad, and the world had fallen into a terrible state. Brad has been given one more chance to set things back on the proper course.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I'm back with the sequel to Human Nature, so read that first! I don't own any of the shows mentioned, or the show the fanfiction revolves around.

Chapter 1

One Does Not Simply Kill Bradford

I sat bolt upright, screaming. I was alive, which confused me. I sat in a chamber composed entirely of gold, and there were massive thrones around me. Each was occupied by a being bigger than a dragon. A few of them were massive Gryphons, a few were Equine, a few Dragon, and the rest appeared to be Raven. I recognized two to be Celestia and Luna. They were arguing.

"I can't believe you just up and brought him from Elysium!" One of the Raven gods said.

"He deserves it. After all, the world is in turmoil, and we can't modify it," One that looked like an Equine said.

I spoke up. "Uh... What's going on?"

"He can still speak," One of the Gryphons said. "That's something."

The one in that said I deserved to be ressurected pounded his hoof on the floor. "You have been brought before the gods to be sent back to the plain of the living! What say you!"

"Dude, I'm confused. I died. And what are the princesses doing here?" I asked.

"We're the goddesses of the Sun and Moon. We've just been allowed to use physical forms to govern the country of Equestria. Tanner, however, killed us, and we were sent back here," Celestia answered, followed by a nod from Luna.

"So what does this mean for me?" I inquired.

"You have been given the rare opportunity for life after death. Do you accept?" One of the Gryphon gods asked.

"Of course!" I exclaimed. "But why me?"

"You have been determined as the only one with enough power in Elysium who could possibly make a difference in the world," One of the Raven gods said.

"I made Elysium? Why don't I remember it?" I asked.

"Because that knowledge is too much for mortals. We have allowed all of your possessions to be returned upon resurrection, such as your bracelets, your orbs of minerals, your Arrow of Light, and even the gift of immortality bestowed upon the Raven King or Queen. You will be given an extra advantage as well. We shall unlock the gift bestowed prior to death." One of the gods waved his hand, and I instantly felt stronger.

"The gift increases your physical abilities by a large margin, allowing you to be physically dominant over most," The god who had brought me back said. "Also, we will answer one question on your mind."

"I have just one." This had been in my head for a while. "The conduit disease can't just be a mutation. It has to be special. What makes a conduit?"

One of the Dragon gods answered. "This is a new one. We know the answer. All conduits are directly related to one of the gods, however distant."

"So which one of you am I related to?" I asked.

The equine who had revived me raised his hoof. "That would be me. I took the form of a human, and mated with one of your species when they resided in this dimension. Clearly, it paid off. In case you would like to know, I am the god of death, Rokon, which makes you a child of death."

"So I'm a demigod of the god of death? Cool."

"Yes. I will chose to unlock the powers of your heritage now, and send you back," My very great grandfather said. "However, resurrection in combination with demigod powers may result in physical transformation. Also, it had been ten years since you died. Go!" He didn't wait for an answer, and began to radiate power. I was enveloped in a white flash, and transported away from wherever I was.

I lay on the ground back in life, then got up. My Arrow was in my hands, and my bracelets on my wrists, as well as my book of forbidden magic in my cloak. My clothes, however, had changed. They were a pure radiant white, and were very soft. It was a nice change of pace. I spotted a puddle. They had said I would look different, so I looked at my reflection in the water. I gasped.

My face looked the same, but my skin was extremely pale. My hair had taken on a color akin to my new clothes, a radiant white. And the colors of my eyes had gone from hazel to a piercing red. I had turned albino.

I was worried about burning in the sun, but it wasn't a problem. The sky was extremely overcast. I broke through the trees around me, and gazed on the terrible sight before me.

The features of the land told me this was Ponyville, or was. The town had been taken down, and in it's place, a city of brick had been erected, similar in appearance to the high Gryphon City. I was not a short distance from the city, so I ran. I was considerably faster than before, on account of my new abilities. I could only wonder what my powers as a child of death were.

I reached the city quickly, and instantly hated every inch of it. I wasn't worried about people recognizing me. They all thought I was dead, and my appearance had been changed.

There were several Equines within the city, yes, but they weren't the same. They were slaves. Pulling carts, carrying the heavier loads. There wasn't a single one not unattended.

On the street corner was a small diner, and I was feeling hungry, so I put aside my intense hatred for my own kind for a few minutes on lunch. I pulled out my gold sphere, and created a few coins. Stepping in through the door, the sweet smell of breakfast food reached my nose, and the sound of a beautiful instrument reached my ears. I sat down at the bar, and ordered a serving of fried eggs. I then chose to look at the player of the music. It crushed my spirits.

It was Octavia, playing her Cello. She was bound in chains on her hind legs, and looked years older than she was last time we met. Made sense, I suppose. According to the gods, it had been ten years. After receiving my eggs, I paid the waitress with a few golden coins, and I ate swiftly. I ordered an apple next, and she said it was on the house after the generous tip I had given her. She handed me a small red apple, and I took it. I walked over to where Octavia stood, playing her instrument.

She stopped to look at me. "Any requests?" She asked.

"No, I just wanted to thank you. I haven't heard music like yours in years, and I wanted to thank you. Here." I held out the apple, and she just stared at it.

"I'm not allowed to accept tips," She explained.

"Not a tip. Consider it a gift." She smiled, and nodded. She gladly took the apple, and bit into it.

An expression of joy washed over her face, and she began crying. "Thank you. You're the first person the show any sort of kindness in ten years."

I smiled. "Don't mention it. I'll be back to hear you play again, so get ready."

"I'll be right here."

As I walked out of the eatery, I received a few negative comments about my kindness, but I ignored them. I took a small walk down the street, and frowned at what lay around me. I noticed Vinyl Scratch at the counter of a record store, with chain around her neck.

I came across a slaver, lining several equines up on an auction platform. Sadly, I recognized several of them. I noticed Lyra, her friend Bon Bon, and even Ditzy.

I was happy to see six in particular. All six of the Element bearers were there, with sullen looks on their faces and marks of whips on their flanks. One thing confused me. Those sullen looks were worn by faces no older than the last time we had seen each other. _"I'll figure that out later,"_ I thought.

The auctioneer was yelling out prices. He directed the crowd to the six Bearers, and shouted the price. "And here's a deal for you, folks! These six are quite the set, and work better together than any others! We'll start the price at two gold pieces!"

A few shouts of minorly increased prices rang out, but I had a plan. I took out my gold sphere again, and modified it into a gold bar about a foot long. I held it up. "I have this!"

The crowd stared in awe at my fortune, and the auctioneer gladly accepted it. He handed me the connected reins controlling my friends, and I led them away.

As we were walking, I heard Twilight speak. "Well, at least we were put together again."

Rainbow dash was next. "But who's this guy? I've never seen 'im before."

I picked up the pace, and led them out of the city. When we were a considerable distance away from the city, I stopped. It was surprise time. "So, are you ready?" I asked.

"Fer what?" Applejack inquired.

"This." I concentrated my magic on the restraints on all of them. But rather than the black aura I expected, they were enveloped in one of white. I released them all from their bindings. They all stared, dumbfounded.

Twilight spoke. "What are you doing?"

"Being nice, Twilight Sparkle."

She was taken aback by the use of her name, which obviously hadn't been spoken by a human in a long time. "H-how do you know me?"

It was time for a bit of fun. "I've done my research. I know all of you. Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and even Pinkie."

They were visibly nervous by then. It was all I could do not to burst out laughing. "Wondering how?"

Applejack glared. "Hay yeah we are!"

"Simple. I'm a demigod. A son of death, to be precise." Technically, I wasn't lying.

"A demigod?" Twilight confirmed. "Those don't exist."

"Yeah!" Pinkie agreed.

"Your opinions don't matter; I know it's true. Besides, it's not like you have any options. You can't leave without being pursued by the law, and I promise I'll treat you fairly. I'll treat you like that friend of yours... Bradford?" I was referring to myself in the third person, which was pretty funny. Cruel but funny. I've found that many of the reason they could send me to Tartarus overlap with what I find funny.

Their expressions went bleak. Surprisingly, Fluttershy spoke. "You could never replace him."

"You couldn't possibly be as kind as he was," Rarity said. "He fought his own kind for us, and died as a result."

"One of you bastards killed him, and he didn't even hesitate to fight!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"He was the only other one who could understand animals like I can," Fluttershy said wistfully.

"There wasn't a single thing he did that didn't help us all us in some way," Applejack said.

"He was always ready for fun, bad time or good," Pinkie observed.

To be honest, I was touched. I had yet to figure out how to explain that I really was back, so I had to lead into it. "By the way, what happened in the last ten years? I was in a coma."

"Once Tanner won the fight, he razed the city, and built this. He enslaved all of the survivors, and it's been like this for ten years," Twilight explained.

"Shame. Really, I don't approve of his methods," I said. "Frankly, I think efforts may go better with peace."

"Bullshit," Rainbow Dash said gruffly.

"I knew Bradford. He was a good man. I would have fought on your side, but I had fear of Tanner. You could say I knew him better than anyone. In fact, he knew me just as well."

"Prove it," Applejack demanded.

"How?" I asked.

"I have an idea," Twilight said. "There's things about us that he knew, things that we haven't told anypony. He only figured them out with mindreading or we confided them in him, but he knew them. I figure he might have told you, so give us one thing."

"You asked, not me. Pinkie, I'm aware of the fact that you are the foster mother of two children, the children of the Cakes. Also, Dash achieved seat of the Wonderbolts, and she's the only one who could fly faster than Brad. Also, the only one who can perform a Sonic Rainboom. That must have been common knowledge ten years ago, but I'd assume you haven't done one recently. Fluttershy, Brad gifted you a Phoenix, and the first time you saw one you freaked during it's regeneration spell. Rarity, I know you grieved more than any of the other people here over Dinky's death all those years ago, because she and your sister were great friends, and she came to the Boutique frequently. Applejack, Brad gave you many more acres of land for your farm, and he was knocked unconscious on the same property. Twilight, you were the apprentice of the late princess, Celestia. You were an avid reader, and one of the strongest Unicorns around. Enough?"

They all stood there, mouths hanging open. "You'll catch flies like that. Close your mouths."

They did so, and Dash spoke. "Either you're a convincing liar, or he's telling the truth." She smirked. "There's one thing only we and he knows about. Nopony knew it was him who did it, except for us, but he may have told you. It includes the life of a filly."

This was easy. "He changed the life a Pegasus filly, unable to fly and her parents weren't ever around. He healed the disease preventing her from flight, and convinced her parents to spend more time with her. And for added effect, her name was Scootaloo."

That got them. "He must have really known you," Fluttershy said.

"Better than himself. Any more proof?" I asked.

"I still don't believe him," Dash said.

"Need more proof? I've got a few more. You all wield the Elements of Harmony. Applejack: Harmony. Fluttershy: Kindness. Pinkie Pie: Laughter. Rainbow Dash: Loyalty. Rarity: Generosity. Twilight Sparkle: Magic. You've used them a few times, first against Nightmare Moon, next against Discord."

"So you know about history, big deal," Dash insulted.

I was tired of this. "You know what, let's get on with this. I didn't know Brad, I am him. I was given a quest from the gods to restore this world to the way it was. Let me guess, you think I'm nuts, right?"

They all nodded. "Figured. Rainbow Dash, you know this better than the rest. During the final battle with Tanner, I was locked in a last stand using my Lunar Blitz. My friend, Xavier, fell from the sky after he gave me a large portion of his energy. You caught him, gave me a smirk, and flew him to safety."

"Okay, there's nothing that says otherwise, but just incase, truth spell!" Twilight exclaimed. Her horn began to glow. "Okay, are you the real Bradford?"

"Yes." The barrier didn't react, which meant I was telling the truth.

"Oh, by Celestia's... No. You died. Tanner incinerated your body after the battle," Twilight stated.

"I got better. Also, that stuff about me being a demigod isn't false. It turns out all conduits are distantly related to one of the gods, and my very great grandfather is the god of death, and the reason I look like this is because he unlocked my powers as a son of death. I don't actually know what they are, but I'll figure it out. I was tasked by the gods to return this world to balance. Also, did you know that The Princesses were actually goddesses? They were given the chance to go to the world of mortals and govern over this country. Really does explain the sun-moon thing."

"Wowie!" Pinkie shouted. "Bradley's back from the dead!"

"Have you seen any of the three humans I trusted? I want to meet them again."

"Nope," Dash said. "I haven't seen them in years."

"In that case, head as far away from town as possible. I'll find you." They nodded, and started galloping away. I teleported to Canterlot, which I discovered had been taken over. The town had been transformed from it's alabaster colors to an emerald color. I strolled right into the city, and took a walk around. None of those in slavery were equines that I recognized, so I ventured closer to the castle. I stood in the castle garden, no occupied by much more fierce colors than before. Rather than the pleasant hues of purple, green, and yellow, the garden now held flowers of red, orange and white. I jogged inside, prepared to fight if somehow recognized. Inside were several well-dressed humans, and a few slave ponies. I ventured further inside, and put on cloaking spell. I walked past the private chambers, and one caught my eye. Inside was a man practicing with a sword, viciously slashing at a dummy. I stepped inside, and revealed myself. Upon closer inspection, I knew him.

It was Jack.

"Who the hell are you?" He asked.

"I didn't think you would recognize me, after I went albino. Why in Tartarus are you working for Tanner?"

"First: I don't know you. Second, I'm the second most powerful mage in the army, and get out before I call the guards. Third, give me one good reason not to do that now."

"He must have wiped your mind. Get ready!" I stated.

"Get out of here!" He slashed at me with his sword. My new physical abilities courtesy of the gods came into play, triggering my new abilities. Purely on reflex, I jumped into the air, and kicked the sword out of his hand onto the floor. He was stunned, and I took the chance to slam him against the wall and bind him to it with a bit of magic. While he struggled, I pressed my fingers against his temples. I began the search the recesses of his mind, but found no locked memories. I did; however, find a series of gaps. This was a problem. I created a mental like with Twilight.

_"Twi? Got any spells for restoring lost memories?"_

_ "Just the one, in fact. Try this."_ She sent me an image of a spell page that showed a memory-reclaiming spell.

_ "Thanks."_ I hung up the connection, and began the spell. The broken sections of Jack's memory began to glow, and re-construct themselves. I completed the spell, and exited his subconscious.

He stared blankly, processing his reclaimed memories. He blinked a few times. "Oh my god... I'm the enemy of Tanner, and he brainwashed me into believing I was on his side! And you... Brad! But you died!"

I released him from the bonds holding him to the wall. "For the second time, I got better." I then proceeded to explain how I had been brought from Elysium by the gods, and sent here to finish my work, as well as how I'm a child of the god of death.

"So... I'm technically a demigod too?" He asked.

"Apparently. I just don't know you're related to. Where's Sara?" I asked.

"Follow me. We need to find Xavier, too." He ran out of the room, and I followed. He led me down to the barracks, and we found Xavier and Sara conversing over lunch.

They stood up and saluted. "Sir!"

"Sit down," Jack commanded. Apparently he was given some sort of authority. "My assistant is going to perform a mandatory magical evaluation for all mages."

They nodded, and sat down. I enveloped them in a veil, and began the spell. As their memories began to repair themselves, their eyes fluttered wildly. I finished the spell, and took a step back. They both stood up.

Sara made eye contact, then delivered a hard slap to my face. "That was for scaring me! How are you here?!"

I once again explained the process of the gods and such.

"Sweet. demigods. Sara like," She said, grinning.

"Wonder who I'm related to?" Xavier wondered.

"No time to find out. Xavier, I know you can teleport, so get everyone else out of here as soon as possible. I have to do something."

"But," Xavier stated, but I cut him off.

"Go!" Xavier teleported away.

There was nothing that could stop me from finding the Elements.

I sprinted through the halls to the throne room, where Tanner was sure to reside, and the Elements were sure to reside. I came to the door, where two guards blocked my path. I simply put my new abilities to use, jumping into the air, and planting a kick on each guard's face, then landed. I dashed into the hall, where a few lightweight mages tried to stop me.

One tried to thrust a dagger into my ribs, but I caught his wrist and snapped it. Another managed to grab my arms from behind, signaling the entire group to tackle me. The entire room mages piled on top of me, and I decided to stop them. I pulsed a large magical shockwave, sending mages flying in various directions. I stood, triumphant over the pathetic excuses for mages. I only knew they were mages because they were emitting a slight magical energy.

Sure enough, there was Tanner on the throne, clapping sarcastically. "Bravo, rebel. You've beaten the rest, but can you take down the best?"

"I'm not after you, Tanner. Give me the Elements. You know what I'm talking about. The necklaces you took."

"Go ahead. I couldn't destroy them, so there's nothing left for use. Also, die." He launched a magical bolt which I easily deflected.

"Tanner, don't even think about it. I don't know how much energy you've absorbed in ten years since our last fight, but I do know one thing. My name is Bradford, and I've been brought back to life for one reason, and that's to end you. I'll be taking the Elements now." I located the strongest source of magic in the room, which were the Elements, concealed behind his throne. I teleported directly in front of the throne, and, catching Tanner of guard, I bitch-slapped him across the room. I pressed my hands to the throne and melted it. I took the chest behind it, and teleported to the location of my Equine friends, in turn taking my human friends to the same location. We all materialized in the same spot, and I distributed the Elements to their respective Bearers.

"We have to move. I pissed off Tanner, and there's no way I'll get off the hook. I have to get to the Raven City, get to old Canterlot castle in the Everfree. I'll meet you there." I tried to teleport myself into the city, but found myself unable. So, I teleported fourteen feet away from it. I stepped through the barrier keeping Raven City concealed, and was relieved to find it undamaged. However, an alarm went of, and I looked forward to see several Raven guards charging me. I spread my wings, which were now a pure white, and soared into the castle. Several Raven gave chase, so I teleported them back to the ground. I landed on the balcony of my chambers, and ran inside. Sitting at my desk was an unfamiliar man, who immediately stood up and summoned a warhammer. Obviously, he was mage, so I readied for a fight. Then I noticed his bracelets.

They were the shape of a cross. It was Sedrick.

"Who are you? A dog of the human military?" He grasped his hammer menacingly. "Answer me!"

"Sedrick! Put away your weapon!" I pleaded.

"I don't know how you know my name, but the lord of the humans is the only one with as much power as I can feel from you, so I have no choice but to try to fight!"

"Listen! It's me, Bradford!"

He stopped and stared for a bit. "Lies! My father died in the war, murdered at your hands! Of all the dirty, underhanded, tricks, impersonating him!" He threw his warhammer at me, and I sidestepped.

Clearly, I would have to subdue him to explain myself. I summoned my scythe, and took a combat scythe. The warhammer returned to Sedrick's hand, and he gasped.

"There's only one man who can wield that weapon." He ran up and embraced me. "Father. I thought you had died."

I broke off. "I did, actually. The gods sent me back to fix the world. How have you been faring?"

"Better than I expected. I have managed to keep the humans at bay with the cloaking barrier, and you gave us quite the scare when you entered city limits. Why the change in demeanor?" He asked.

"It turns out that I'm the grandchild of Rokon, the god of death. He unlocked my powers as a child of death."

"That's new." Sedrick's face lit up. "We have to announce your arrival! We knew something was wrong when you died and no one was made immortal, but we couldn't figure out what!"

"Gather the citizens. I'll do some spells, and they'll see it's me. I'll be in the meeting hall." Sedrick nodded, and started towards the door. I stopped him with a grab of the shoulder. "Sedrick?"

"Yes?" He replied happily.

"I'm glad I can count on you to keep this tribe going when I'm gone. I won't die over time, but there's a good chance I'll die in combat. Something tells me I won't get another chance," I told him.

"Thanks. Will things be different now? I'm technically older than you, being nineteen."

I smiled. "No. Regardless of age, you're still my son."

He smiled in return, and sprinted away. I walked back to the railing of the balcony, and leaned over the edge. Sighing, I looked out over the edge, and down on the people.

"Need any advice?" A voice from my side said. I looked to my left, and there was a regular man standing there. A human man. He had white hair, and red eyes, similar to mine. He was about six feet in height, just under me. He was wearing white robes identical to my own.

"Um... How did you get in here?" I asked him. Humans shouldn't be able to get past the barrier.

"What, you don't recognize your own grandfather?" He said defensively.

That could have only meant one thing. "Oh, hi. What's the god of death doing here?"

"I can't see my only living relative?"

"No that's fine. It just seems like you would have a few things to attend to," I said.

"I can do that from anywhere. Here, look at this." He pointed to an old woman in the streets. "She doesn't have long left. I don't like watching people die, but it's necessary. She's about to suffer a stroke, and won't recover." Sure enough, she collapsed, right there in the street.

"Can I do that?" I asked.

"No, but it doesn't limit you. Look at her again," Rokon suggested.

I looked down at her, but saw two of her. She was a spirit, staring down at her body in awe. A door appeared, and she stepped through it. It disappeared, leaving the body behind. "I'm gonna have to guess and say no one else saw that."

"Just you," Rokon confirmed. "I'd assume you have other abilities, but realistically, I can't determine what they'll be. For all I know, you can kill people with a thought or, even resurrect them. I guess we'll find out."

"Yeah..." I agreed.

"Farewell," Rokon said, then disappeared. I stood for a few more minutes, then decided to go wait in the hall.

This was gonna be good.

A/N: I love how much potential this story has!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Dreams Aren't Always Just Dreams

The re-introduction of me to my people went well, but it was pretty akward. I used to think the entire tribe only liked me because I had the black aura and almost everything about me was black, but I may have been wrong. I was still appreciated by the tribe, and I was still accepted as king.

I had left the city to Sedrick's care, and departed. I was on a mission to find and set free those that I could determine as useful to the cause. First it was back to Ponyville to save the two musicians, Octavia and Vinyl Scratch, who could easily give my cause some morale.

I also had to find any others, so realistically, I wasn't just hunting for those who could help. Any of them, really. I strolled into town, then I visited the diner again, and sure enough, there was Octavia, playing. She smiled as I jogged inside, and I began speaking to the manager, which, to my luck, was out and about.

"Hello?" I greeted.

"Need somethin'?" He said gruffly.

"I want to buy your entertainment," I replied.

"The pony? No way. She's too valuble."

"I'll pay any price. Money is no object." I reached into my pocket and created a gold bar. I held it out, and the man's eyes went wide.

"Sold!" He ran over to Octavia, and unlocked her chain. She trotted over to me, and grinned.

"You bought me?" She confirmed.

"Yep. Let's get to the music store; we have something to do," I said. Octavia nodded, and we walked to the record store, where Vinyl was dealing with a particularly diffucult customer.

"Sir, for the last time, we don't have what you want," Vinyl supplied.

"FINE!" He yelled, and slapped Vinyl across the face, and stormed out. I stepped over to the counter, and smiled at her.

"Can I talk to the manager? I would like to purchase you."

"He's out, and wouldn't sell me anyway," Vinyl replied. "Hey Tavi."

"You know I hate that name," Octavia said.

"Well, even if he's out, I don't care. You're coming with me. I'm a fugitive anyway, so one more doesn't matter." Without warning, I placed my hand on both mares and teleported to the outskirts of the city.

"Just who are you?" Octavia asked. "As far as I know, there are only a few magi left in the world."

"Simple." I only said one thing, expecting to trigger everything. "I'm Not Alright."

Both of the mares broke out laughing.

"I can't believe it! It's Brad! Everypony thought you died!" Vinyl exclaimed.

"I got better. Head to old Canterlot in the Everfree, a few others will be there. I'm gathering as many ponies I know to take back the country, so I'll be back with the others. Bye!" I teleported to the only other city I had actually frequented, besides Canterlot, which was Appleloosa.

The farm town was empty.

Not a single human or equine was in sight, and the buildings were falling apart. The farms to the side of the city were wilted and dry, as if no one had been here is years.

I had nothing left to do here, so I tried my best to teleport to Manehattan, where I had never actually been. After the successful transport to the city, I was forced to take in the horrible sight before me. The city was infested with human scum, and every single pony was covered in scars from riding crops or whips. My opinion of the place wasn't helped by the sight of a man beating a young mare with a wooden stick.

I sprinted down the street, hoping to find an auction for slaves of sorts. I found no platform for sales, but I did find a large building with a sign saying it was the slave pens. I pushed open the doors, and was met with a pleasant little reception room, decorated with potted plants. I rang the bell on the desk, and the receptionist popped up from below the desk.

"Hi! What kind would you like?" She asked excitedly.

"Um... What?" I replied.

She sighed. "You must be new here. Would you like a male or female?"

I got it then. "Doesn't matter."

"Alright. Pegasus, Unicorn, or Regular?"

"Still doesn't matter. I just want one."

"Follow me." She stepped away from the desk, and past a set of double doors, and into the pens. What lay behind the doors killed me inside. Not only were they living in barely livable states, they had foals here too. Fillies and Colts sat in groups, saying nothing. However, I wasn't focused on them. In the corner were three mares, conversing.

One was a yellow mare with a crimson mane, wearing a small bow on her head. It had to be Applebloom, only older. She now possessed a cutie mark depicting an apple with a hammer over it. The next was an orange mare with a deep purple mane, which had to be Scootaloo. She had a cutie mark of a flaming Pegasus wing. Sweetie Belle, still with her cotton candy-colored mane and white coat, now had a cutie mark depicting a single musical note colored a deep blue.

"Miss?" I said.

"Which have you chosen?"

"I'd like those three over there." I pointed to the mares previously mentioned.

"Great choice." She cupped her hands over her mouth, and yelled for them to come over. They unhappily trudged over, and I handed her a gold bar. The mares followed me from the building, and without warning, I teleported us away from the city.

We materialized back inside the forest, and they were obviously surprised at my magical abilities.

"What the hay!" Scootaloo scolded. "Warn us when you teleport!"

"Is that any way to talk to the man who just set you free?" I asked, then removed the harnesses around their necks.

"Who are you?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Let's see if you can guess. Scootaloo, did your parents ever tell you? About that disease you had as a filly?"

"How the heck did you know about that? The humans weren't even here when I-" Scootaloo's eyes widened. "Sweet Celestia, it's Brad!"

"It can't be him," Sweetie said.

"Yeah," Applebloom agreed. "He died in battle."

"Then how do I know that you and Scootaloo broke the branch that knocked me out all those years ago skydiving?" I said.

"It's him. Ah neva told anypony about that, and he onla found out by mindreadin' me."

"How did you survive?" Sweetie asked.

"I didn't. The gods gave me a second chance to get the world back to the way it should be," I informed.

"Great!" Scootaloo exclaimed.

"I'll teleport you to where the others I've saved are, so you can catch up." Without waiting a second, I sent them to the old Canterlot castle. It was getting late, so I decided to sleep for a bit. I didn't need to, but I liked to dream. You can't do that while you're awake. I laid down in the grass, and fell asleep quickly.

As I predicted, I began to dream. I knew it was a dream, so it was kind of fun at first. I was at Ponyville, the one before this all started. Sedrick sat on my shoulders, as a child, and I was running around the town.

"Having fun?" I turned to my left to see Rokon, smiling at me.

Sedrick disappeared, and the landscape shifted to the Training Ground of the Gods. "I was. What's this for?"

"We've been monitoring you ever since we unlocked your god powers, and it's been decided that I'm to train you to use them. We don't want you to accidentally kill the entire population of the planet."

"That would be bad. First lesson?" I urged.

"Right to the point. I like that. Ready to visit Tartarus?" He said.

"As I'll ever be." I woke up, and Rokom was standing there in reality. He waved his hand, and the door I saw earlier appeared. He pulled it open, and we stepped through into Tartarus. Not the judgement rooms, straight into the depths of the worst place anything could end up. Before us was something greek mythology called the Minotaur.

"Your first lesson is to fight that and not die. Have fun!" Then he disappeared.

"Fantastic. Just leave me to fight one of the worst monsters in the underworld on my own," I said to myself. Seeing as I had no choice, I summoned my scythe, and spread my wings. Luckily, the chamber was large enough to fly around in, and I flew high up into the air. I folded in my wings, and dive bombed my set enemy. As I drew closer to the beast, I raised my weapon.

Nope.

He raised his mighty fist, and struck the ground. He used his bulky hoofed leg to kick me across the floor. Looking back, it reminded me heavily of the dragon.

I stood back up, and charged again. He swung his fist once again, but I was ready. I jumped into the air, and landed on his arm. I sprinted up his forearm, and onto his shoulder. Using the blunt end of my scythe, I whacked his skull. I jumped off as the creature bellowed in pain, then cursed myself for not using the blade.

The creature turned and hooked his arm for a direct hit on my form. I flew across the room, and slammed into the wall. The Minotaur ran over to me, and picked me up in his fist. He began to squeeze, putting more and more pressure on my bones.

I heard something snap, and I cried out in pain. The beast glared at me, and crushed me harder.

_ "Well, here we are. I always thought Tanner would kill me, not the Minotaur. Guess grandpa picked a harder test than I can handle,"_ I thought.

Then I realized something. It might be corny, but I just realized that the world would be fucked if I didn't live through this. "NO!" I shouted.

I felt a different sort of power welling up inside of me, unlike my normal magic. It felt natural, like it it belonged with me. I opened shot a glare back at the beast, and released the foreign strength.

I pulsed a wave of energy, which was red instead of the normal white. The Minotaur releases me, and staggered backwards. Rather than charging again, the beast simply disappeared. I felt the power fading, then Rokon appeared next to me.

"That was fast," He said.

"You almost let me die!" I exclaimed.

"No, I didn't. I would have stopped the fight if you had come closer to dying, but you didn't. And as a result, you just found your powers!"

"What's next?" I asked.

"Nothing in my regard. I've done all I can for you, as I don't know what you can do. You'll have to figure that out for yourself," Rokon said.

"Fine. Just send me back already," I demanded.

"Bye!" He waves his hand, and I was transported back to the field where I was prior to the fun in Tartarus, and I made the decision against my best judgement to enter the slave pens once more. I teleported to an alleyway next to the building, and threw open the doors. Before the receptionist could speak, I hit her with a sleeping spell. I burst through the doors of the pens, and amplified my voice.

"Each and every one of you is coming with me! You're all probably confused, but I'm the human who fought with the Equestrians ten years ago! Come with me if you want to be free!" Not that they had a choice. I placed a veil around each and every equine in the building, no easy feat, and teleported them and myself to the castle in the Everfree. There were about eighty of us, so we fit well inside the throne room.

I easily picked out Jack and Sara, and pushed through the crowd to get to them.

"Sup," Sara greeted.

"Not much. Just saved an entire warehouse of slaves from a life of work. Average Tuesday."

"Now all you have to do is figure out how to move at the speed of light and you'll be set," Jack said sarcastically.

"I did. Then I died. Now I'm back. What's next, the apocalypse?" I said.

"Hope not. Tanner came too close when he destroyed the princesses," Sara said.

"Have you noticed something... Odd about the Bearers?" I asked.

"We already spoke about that," Jack supplied. "They didn't age, unlike the rest of us. You're lucky you don't, Brad. We think the Elements have something to do with it."

"Fantastic. Maybe they have crazy super abilities like us," I philosophized.

"That would help," Sara said wistfully.

"Now all we have to do is hope Tanner hasn't figured us out. He and a few apprentices are the only mages left, so it's unlikely that they've discovered us," Jack said.

With that, the roof was ripped clean from the supports, and exposed the group of fugitives. I teleported to Twilight, and gave my commands.

"Twilight, I need to ask a favor!"

"What?!"

"Teleport the castle as far as you can! Leave me behind; I need to deal with whoever just tore off the roof!"

Her eyes went wide. "I can't teleport the entire castle!"

"Try it anyway!" I spread my wings, and looked down at the lavender Unicorn, whose horn was glowing like wildfire. The entire castle was soon enveloped in a purple glow, and then it disappeared.

"God, she actually did it," I said in awe. My joy was silenced by the tackle of a small boy, whom I pushed from my frame.

"You ruined everything!" He complained. "Tanner was gonna reward me for killing the horses!" he had short brown hair, and was wearing little metal bracelets.

"Kid, get out of here. I don't want to fight an eight year old," I said.

"I'm tougher than I look!" He said.

"Yeah, yeah. Go away." I turned and waved behind me. I heard a growl from the kid, and my hand was stabbed through by an icicle.

"Told you!" He yelled.

I pulled the icicle from my hand and closed the wound. "Fine. I'll fight a kid, but I won't like it."

He grinned. "Good."

He disappeared, and in his place, five copies appeared. "Which one's real?" He taunted.

"Shit." I shot a fireball at one, and it went right through.

"Wrong one!" Every copy charged me, and I decided to wait to see which one actually hit me to strike back.

That didn't work so well.

Rather than just one of his kicks hitting me, all of the five made solid impact. The kicks hit me all at one time. Two in the stomach, two in the knees, and the last in the head. I flapped my wings backwards, and glared.

_"This isn't good. He can summon physical copies of himself that can do the damage, but can't be hurt. How do you solve this one?"_ I came to the simple conclusion of brute force. I simultaneously launched five fireballs at the copies, and all hit directly. However, rather than all of them disappearing, they remained.

"Still wrong!" They taunted.

"Damn!" There was only one logical conclusion here. The real one had to be hiding around somewhere. I closed my eyes, and sent out a radar pulse. I discovered his location, and incinerated the bush he was hiding in. I teleported right next to him. I grabbed his wrists, and fused his bracelets together behind his back. I then picked him up and extended the bracelets' metal to wrap around his legs as well.

Now that he was curled in a ball, I used a ball of chalk from my pocket to write a message on his back. It read _"Dear Tanner, don't send this one next time."_ I teleported the boy back to Tanner's throne room, and the copies faded.

All that was left was to figure out where Twilight had sent the castle. I couldn't find Twilight's signature of magic in Equestria, so I figured she must have sent the castle pretty far. I eventually decided I'd look later, decided to try and find a new ally. I transported myself to the known location of the Dragon migration around that time of year, and almost fell in a pool of lava upon re-entry, but a clawed hand took my own and pulled me back up.

"Thanks," I said. I got a good look at my savior, discerning only that his he was young. I've seen a grown dragon before, and this wasn't one. He was only about my height, and had deep purple scales. He was marked with a brilliant green set of spikes along his spine, and a smile across his face. It had to be Spike.

"Spike! Thanks for the save! It may seem weird, but it's-"

"Brad, I know. That's why I saved you. I would have let any other human fall. Just be glad I managed to see past your new colors to know it was you," He said.

"It's great to be back. Before you ask, the gods gave me another chance to get this right. It's a holy task to kill Tanner now," I explained.

"You won't get the help of the dragons. They say they have no place in this war, and absolutely not get involved," Spike said sadly.

"Shame. Now I have two problems; no allies and now I have to figure out where Twilight sent the castle," I said.

Spike's face lit up. "She's still alive?"

"Sure. Pretty much everyone you know survived. Minus those killed in prior battles."

"I thought she died! I haven't seen any of the Bearers in ten years! Where is she?" He said hastily.

"As I said before, she sent the castle acting as a base somewhere via teleport. I haven't the faintest idea where she is."

"Let's go!" He suggested.

"I thought the big guys forbade the Drakes to get involved," I reminded.

"They also told me I couldn't prank the elders. Onward!" He pointed into the sky, and unfolded a set of brilliant green wings I hadn't noticed before. He took off, and I repeated his actions. He immediately began to fly at top speed in an eastern direction.

I caught up with him quickly. "When did you get your wings?" I asked.

"I didn't have any parents to teach me how life works, so I didn't know that they come in during the teenage years. I got them a year or two back," Spike replied.

"Sweet. Make sure nothing comes our way; I'm gonna try to locate Twilight again," I said. Spike nodded, and I closed my eyes in concentration, and began my spell. I hadn't tried this before, but I figured, "Why not?"

I concentrated a large portion of my magic into the air around me, and into an orb. You know about how a bat uses echolocation? Well, this was like that, but with magic.

I sent out a massive pulse of energy, conceivably large enough to encompass the earth in a whole. I detected a few powerful signatures coming from the human cities, but I figured those were just mages. Twilight was the most powerful unicorn in existence, so I was just being hopeful.

Ping.

There it was. I got a rebound from another magical signature, way out in the desert. It had no name, as it was never charted or visited, but the signature was definitely Twilight's. It was more leagues away than I was comfortable teleporting, so I made the quick, and bad, decision to fly.

"Spike?" I said.

"Yeah?"

"Did Dash ever tell you about my accident?" I questioned.

"The one where you broke almost every bone in your body using the acceleration spell? Yeah;" He replied.

"Comfortable flying at just under the speed of sound?" I asked.

He smirked. "Let's do it."

I smiled, and prepared the spell. I pumped magic into mine and Spike's wings, then stopped. "Don't slow down!" I warned. I leaned forward, and beat my wings. I took off at the same speed as the first time, but under control. I cruised along at just under whatever speed sound is, and I would have gone faster, but I didn't want to create a Rainboom. My cheeks were slapping against my ears, I think, and my eyes were watering, so I raised a barrier to protect them.

The distance was about twenty leagues, but while going at 700 miles an hour, you tend to get through the distance pretty quickly. On the way there, a lazy duck tried to hitch a ride on me, which I shooed away. Lazy birds.

We had seen the castle from several miles away, and reached it within a few seconds of the sighting. I slowed us down, and we landed inside the throne room, which, luckily for us, no longer had a roof.

The only ones who remained in the room were The Bearers, Jack, and Sara. Xavier had gone who knows where. To this day, I still haven't figured out where in Tartarus he went.

"Twilight!" I greeted. "Jesus, I thought you said you couldn't do it!"

"I didn't think I could. I guess I'm quite a bit more powerful than I thought," Twilight observed.

"Any other news?" I asked.

Jack spoke up. "I don't think the others need to know this. Come on." He walked through a door, accompanied by Sara. I followed. It had taken me a second, but I realized that their hair colors and eyes had changed. Looking back, it was probably the same back at the Everfree, but I didn't notice. Jack's regular black hair had been shifted to a deep brown, and Sara's to a blood red. Sara's eyes were black as coal, and Jack's had changed to grey.

"The gods aren't only favoring you. They visited us in addition," Sara said.

"Turns out I'm descended from the goddess of battle strategy. She looks just like Athena was depicted in the Percy Jackson Series, and my features changed. A whole new window of tactics came to me in my sleep last night," Jack said.

"I'm chained to the god of war," Sara said. "I tested my new abilities, and I learned quick as hell that I'm a killing machine."

"This is great!" I exclaimed. "We all have god powers now! This is a whole new step in the war!"

"Damn right," Jack agreed. "We just need to figure out where Xavier went. His hair's grey. A dark grey. Turns out he's descended from the god of knowledge."

"Can we go just one day without a problem?" I wondered out loud.

"Apparently not," Sara agreed.

"I need favors. The both of you haven't been pegged as outlaws, unlike myself," I said, "So I need both of you to go on intel missions."

"Where to?" Jack replied.

"Wherever you want. Here." I shot a little laser at their heads containing the knowledge of the teleport spell.

"Thanks. I've been wondering when you'd teach us this one," Sara said.

"Don't mention it or come back here until you've found valid intel," I ordered.

They nodded, and disappeared in flashes of magic. Jack's was brown, and Sara's was blood red. I walked back into the throne room, where only the Bearers remained, except for Pinkie Pie.

I was tackled by Rarity, Applejack, and Dash as soon as I entered, and smothered with hugs. "What's up?" I asked.

"What's up?!" Rarity questioned. "You saved our sisters!"

"All in a day's work," I said. "Why's Dash so happy about it?"

"About five years back, Scootaloo's parents were killed by an abusive slaver, so I sort of became her honorary sister," Dash explained.

"Great for you!" I congratulated. "Now, if we-" I was cut off by a pink blur slamming into me at unnatural speeds.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" She shouted quickly.

"What's up with you?" I asked.

"Pound and Pumpkin were in there! I got separated from them about a year back!" She exclaimed.

"Fantastic. Now, if we can get down to business, there are plans to discuss," I stated. "It's becoming increasingly obvious that Tanner has figured out my comeback. We have to figure out how to counterattack, just in case."

"I suggest the library," Rarity recommended.

"Why?" Twilight asked. "Darn! Brad, I forgot to thank you for finding Spike!"

"Don't mention it, and Rarity's right. I've had a nagging feeling that the Elements are more than what we think," I said.

"I've had the same thought. There's something special about them if they made us all immortal," Fluttershy said.

"Would you look at this?" I said. "We're one big immortal family!"

That earned a laugh. A genuine laugh of joy. That was something I hadn't heard in a long time. "Okay. Obviously, I can't put you guys into a city. You'll just get captured. I'll get to a library and see if I can shed some light on our situation," I said. Waiting for no reply, I teleported to a place I had only heard of from Twilight's stories.

The Crystal Empire.

I just hoped it was still standing. Thankfully, it was. I hadn't actually been there before, so there was no way I could have been prepared for the extravagance of the city. Massive crystal structures stood in all sections of the city. A castle made entirely of the most fantastic gemstone stood in the center of town, and I'll admit that I was a bit jealous. I made a note to ask if I could take a sample to construct a fee things in Raven City, and continued onward. I encountered a few ponies, and suffice to say, I was surprised that they were made of crystal. Confused the hell out of me. Been awhile since I've used that phrase.

"Human!" One of them cried out. I was instantly assaulted by an armored stallion, who held a knife in his teeth to my throat.

"Relax," I urged. "I'm a friend."

"Likely story. The prince will decide your fate," He stated. We urged me to my feet, and led me to the entrance of the castle.

We proceeded up the stairs to the throne room, his knife poking me in the back the whole way. The throne room may have been more beautiful than Canterlot's, what with it's magnificent crystal throne. On it sat two equines, one a Unicorn stallion, and the other, to my surprise, was an Alicorn. I had thought the race died with the princesses. The stallion was an alabaster white, with a blue mane. The Alicorn had a stunning array of color: a pink coat and purple and gold mane.

"What's one of them doing here?" The stallion asked condescendingly.

"He won't believe that I'm a friend!" I exclaimed. "I promise I don't want to hurt you!"

"Shining, if you know me, you know I'm a good judge of character," The Alicorn said. "I think we should give him a chance to explain himself."

The name sparked a memory in my head. "Shining?" I confirmed. "As in Shining Armour?"

"How do you know me?" He asked.

"You led an army from this city to Ponyville to help in the fight!" I exclaimed.

"Not one of you should know my name," He said.

"What if I say Twilight sent me?" I asked. Both of their faces lit up with joy at the mention of her name.

"She alive?" The Alicorn questioned.

"Yeah. I've been sent to gather information. We have a hunch that the Elements aren't just what they seem," I said.

The Alicorn smiled. "We got letters from Twilight all the time saying that not were bad, and that she'd found a few who could pick the right side."

"Bradford, I think that was your name," Shining said. "I thought you died in the war, by Tanner's wrath."

"I did. The gods sent me back," I explained. "I need access to the library. I can't very well waltz into Canterlot, because I'm an outlaw in every single human city."

"Get there as quickly as possible," The Alicorn commanded. "By the way, you may call me Cadence."

"Great to meet you. I'll be on my wa-" My speech was halted by an overwhelming sense of sleepiness. I began struggling to stay awake, stumbling around the throne room and unintentionally knocked over a attendant.

That was it. I couldn't stay conscious any longer, and passed out. However, rather than the simple dream I expected, it was so much more. Yes, it was still a dream, but it was so... Lifelike. More than a dream could ever be.

I was lying in my bed back home with my cat sitting on my lap. I miss him. He was purring softly while _Hero of War_ by Rise Against played on my ipod. For a second, I thought it had all been a dream. I sort of wish it was.

Suddenly, and to my dismay, the world began to spin and blur. The scene changed into a darker shade before it stopped rotating, then shifted into the throne room of Canterlot. The new one, the hellish remake of the original.

"So how are things?" Tanner asked from his blood-soaked throne. Just to be clear, that was a metaphor.

"Very funny, subconscious," I said. "You can wake me up now."

"This is my doing," Tanner explained. "Not your mind's."

I found that surprisingly easy to believe. "What the hell do you want?"

"I was hoping we could spend a bit of time in here. Like before all this. I admit it, Brad. I miss the old world." He shifted from his 24 year old form back to his 14 year old one. "Whaddaya say?"

"Fuck you," I spat out.

He scowled. "Why not?"

That question filled me with a terrible sort of rage I hope no one will ever have to see. "WHY NOT!?" I stomped my foot on the ground. "YOU HAVE SINGLE-HANDEDLY ENSLAVED THE WHOLE OF A PEACEFUL POPULATION! A LOT OF THEM WERE MY FRIENDS, AND YOU EXPECT ME TO JUST FORGET EVERYTHING JUST SO YOU CAN HAVE A FEW MOMENTS OF FUN?!"

"Well... Sure," he replied.

That snapped me. "YOU ARE THE SICKEST EXCUSE FOR A MAN TO EVER WALK THIS PLAIN OF EXISTENCE!" Even in this dream, I found I could still focus my magic, so I began to amplify my voice. It was enough to shatter the windows, even in the dream. "I SWEAR ON EVERY SINGLE ONE OF MY ANCESTORS THAT I WILL FIND SOME WAY TO END YOUR MISERABLE EXISTENCE! I DON'T CARE HOW LONG IT TAKES, OR HOW MANY LIVES I HAVE TO LIVE, YOU WON'T GO UNPUNISHED!" The dreamscape, believe it or not, actually shattered at the volume. I didn't like getting this mad, but he just... Broke me.

I awoke not in the Crystal Empire, but right on top of of the mountain that Canterlot was built into. To this day, I don't have the faintest idea how I got there, but I l knew one thing.

Tanner wasn't walking away from this unharmed.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Updates may become a bit less frequent than they already are, due to the fact that I'm writing a book in addition to put on FictionPress. So if you see a book with the concept of conduism in it on there, it's mine.

Chapter 3

I'm Restarting this War

It was around the time when I woke up from Tanner's trance that I made my decision. I couldn't take back the country without rekindling the alliance with the Griffon Kingdoms, so I was off to their country. I just hoped Tanner hadn't razed it to the ground.

I teleported to the location of my meeting with the king, but found no one on the throne room. Confused, I stepped out through the huge double doors leading to the outside of the castle.

The city streets were deserted as well, which confounded me. It was broad daylight, so there was no reason for anyone to be inside. I ran down the stairs, as I was getting worried. I opened the door of the nearest house, and found not a . That was when I drew the line.

I concentrated my magic, and sent out a radar ping. Rather than what I expected, which was not one return, I found several. However, the thing that stumped me was that every single one of them was deep underground. My only option was to dig. A teleport could go wrong and send me into the layers of earth, and finding the entrance would have been hopeless in this massive city.

I removed the iron ball from my pockets, and transformed it into a two spades worn on the hands. In order to make it faster, I put a large amount of magic into my arms, to increase digging speed. I put on a cloaking spell, and drove the spade into the ground. I broke through easily, and I began my descent.

In retrospect, I could have figured out an easier way. The digging, though sped up, still took around two hours. I eventually broke into a chamber, and thank my grandpa I was cloaked. I had emerged in from the ceiling of a large room, at least fifteen feet high. Below me was a masive table, set up with maps and figurines. It was a war map.

I didn't have much time to observe, as digging in from the ceiling caused me to fall from it. I managed to flip around the air, and land on the table. Because I was invisible, this caused a certain amount of unrest among the Griffons inside. Meaning, they flipped out.

They didn't speak a word just flailed around in frenzy. Sitting at the head of the table was the king, who didn't appear to have aged much since our last meeting.

"Calm yourselves," he ordered. "It was merely the wind."

I uncloaked. Not my best idea. "Hey kingy!" I greeted. The Griffons around us, backed up against the wall, but the king stood firm. His eyes narrowed.

"You. I may forget a name, but never a face. You're the man who came here so many years ago proposing an alliance, correct?" He regaled.

"Yep. I'm restarting the war," I explained. "Care to join in?" I asked.

"Get out," He commanded. "I refuse. These plans are for defense, not offense. We lost many loyal soldiers in that war, and we won't be doing it again."

"But-" I was cut off by him raising a clawed hand in a silencing motion. Realizing that there was nothing left for me here, I teleported away.

I materialized back at the Old Canterlot castle, where I was awaited in the throne room by... No one. Everyone had left, most likely to plan. Assuming, I tried to find the barracks. I assumed correctly, but I only found Jack. He had layed out a complex map of Equestria, with movements of armies in every direction.

"What's up?' I greeted.

"I've got over a hundred tactics. I'm just trying to figure out which one will work best," He explained.

"Alright... I'l just... Leave you to that," I said. He nodded, then went back to his plans. I left the room, and quickly tracked down two members my odd group. Twilight and Dash were standing in the bunk room of the barracks with extremely frantic looks on their faces. Pinkie was twitching violently in the corner.

"What's up with her?" I asked.

"It's the Pinkie Sense," Twilight supplied. "We don't know what this one means, and Pinkie can't tell us for obvious reasons."

"Stay on guard," I commanded. I had a terrible sinking feeling that could only mean one thing: something bad was about to happen.

"Nothing's gonna find us way out here," Dash stated. "We're in the middle of the desert."

It was then that I felt an immense magical signature. I dived backwards a few feet, but neglected to grab my equine friends. a burst of emerald green filled the air around them, and a human man appeared next to them. He wore iron combat armor, and had a piercing glare inside his helmet from his pale blue eyes.

He grabbed the manes of Twilight and Rainbow Dash, then spoke. "If you want to see them again, come to the highest volcano." He disappeared in another flash of green, then Pinkie passed out.

I was left to wonder if I would ever get a break, and why he picked the volcano. There was only one he could have meant, which was the highest point in the Equestrian country, and in the Dragon highlands. I began to ready my long distance teleport spell, then casted it. Rather than the black light I had become so familiar with, the beam was white. I was then transported away from the castle, and above said volcano. I spread my wings and landed on the lip of the flaming mountain, and tried to resist the immense heat. I placed a flame shield around myself, but I had to be careful; it wouldn't protect me from an unfortunate slip.

"So you come," The man said from midair. He was hovering above the mouth of the volcano, holding the mares by the hind legs above it.

"Damn right! Have you stooped so low to take hostages?" I questioned.

"Will you fight?" He asked, changing the topic.

"Hell no! Let them go!" I demanded.

"As you wish." Then he delivered two kicks to Twilight and Dash's heads, knocking them unconscious.

He released his grip.

The two dropped from the sky, heading straight for the volcano. I merely stared at my falling companions before I snapped back into reality. I braced myself, then beat my wings as hard as I could to meet them in the air. I managed to snag the unconscious mares by the waists, and painstakingly carry them to the lip of the volcano, where I put a fireshield over them.

I turned back to face the man, with my eyes full of rage. what would your first instinct if a stranger tried to kill your friends? One thing was clear about this man, which was that he was here to kill me, so I made my decision.

"You will not be walking out of here alive," I said coldly.

"I think I'll prove you wrong," He said. There was something about the voice, like a sense of familiarity, but I couldn't place it. He drew a mace from his side, and rather than briging forth my scythe, my hands began to crackle with lighting.

I withdrew my wings, and tried a spell I had learned recently. I was exactly the same as what he was using to levitate. I rose up into the sky to his altitude.

"Let's make a deal," He proposed.

"Go on," I replied.

"No killing. If you win, I'll give you the key to Tanner's weapon stockade," He said, holding up a small golden key to emphasize. "But if I win, you tell me where the pony army is hiding."

I was an honest man, and confident enough in my skills. "Deal."

He laughed. "Fantastic. Tell you what, I'll even reveal my face under this helmet if your losing!" He didn't wait. He charged, and swung his mace. I sidestepped him, and threw a lighting-infused punch at his side. It impacted, and the energy conducted to the rest of his armor. He had a bit of a spasm at the time, so I took advantage of the situation. I threw a reverse axe kick into his chin, and his helmet was knocked off. For the first time, I got a good look at his face, and was dumbfounded.

Ben "Fuckface" was back.

"Surprised? It's amazing how far a little bit of Necromancy can go," He said smugly.

I recovered quickly. "I don't care. I just have to put you away again."

"Wrong," He said, then disappeared. His voice began to echo from every direction. "I'm a great deal more powerful than I was last time."

A punch flew from nowhere, and impacted my cheek. I threw my fist back at the source, but hit nothing. Another punch from nowhere flew and hit the front of my knee. It buckled, and I hunched over.

"You can't hit what you can't see," Ben taunted.

I knew he was right. That's why I decided to end it, before he revealed any other advantages. I formed a cross shape with my fingers.

"Eagle Sight!" I yelled. Forbidden magic time. Eagle Sight is a spell designed to boost the user's vision, and requires an immense amount of power to use. Luckily, I had such a power. The spell modifies one's vision so any concealment wards are useless.

With my sight modified, I found Ben hovering just a few feet in front of me. I smirked, and delivered a swift kick to the stomach. He doubled over, but I think it was the fact that I hit him that stunned him, not the kick.

"I'm gonna make sure you can't come back this time," I whispered.

Suddenly, he whipped his foot around and caught me in the face. It knocked me off balance, and he kicked again in the stomach. He brandished his mace ones again, and hit my side with it. My ribs exploded in pain, and I started falling. I managed to suspends myself with magic before I hit the lava, but my ribs were definitely broken.

He slowly drifted down, and met my eyes. "Just like the Unicorn."

Normally I would have snapped and murdered his sorry ass, but I couldn't move. This break was brutal, and I couldn't speak to operate the forbidden healing spell.

He raised his mace, and brought it down on my chest. That was it. I couldn't hold myself in midair anymore. I fell into the mouth of the volcano. However, something entirely unexpected happened.

I didn't die.

I just drifted there, unburned by the lava. I opened my eyes, but it was as cold as water to me, so I didn't get burned.

"Good thing I got here in time!" A voice from my right said. It was Rokon.

"I thought the gods couldn't interfere!" I exclaimed. I was surprised I could speak.

"They'll have my ass for this. Now get up there, and end your bet," He commanded.

"Got it." I used the ability to hover to burst from the lava, catching a very surprised Fuckface by the neck.

"I think I win," I said confidently. I punched him on the elbow after sending a but of power into my arm, and I heard a crack. He weakly used the other arm to hold up the key, which I snatched from his grasp. "Sorry, but you've pissed off the Raven King. Bye!" I said psychotically.

I dumped him right in the lava. It might sound sadistic, but I enjoyed his dying screams of pain. Hopefully, he wouldn't be coming back.

I looked at the key in my hand, then laughed like a madman. I looked down at the mares I had saved, who were staring at me happily.

I floated down to meet them. "How much did you see?" I asked.

"All of it," Dash said. "We thought you died again."

"The gods saved me," I explained.

"What now?" Twilight asked.

"I won the key to Tanner's armory. I'll think I'll go blow it up," I said.

Dash chuckled. "Have fun. Twi, take us home."

Twilight nodded, and the two disappeared in a purple flash. I teleported to Canterlot, and snuck into the lower rooms of the castle. I came to a large metal door, and decided against blowing it off it's hinges. Didn't want to make my presence known to the whole city.

I used the key to unlock the door, and came face-to-face with the largest stockpile of weapons I've ever seen. Swords, shields, armor, and all sorts of armor littered the entire area. I thought to myself how fun this was going to be, then left my mark.

I blew one hole in the wall with a controlled explosion, then began throwing magical grenades in every direction. When I was satisfied with my work, I brought forth my wings and soared from the armory. It was troll time.

I glided up to Tanner's window, and knocked on it. He looked over, and scowled. He readied a spell in his hand, but I pointed downward and grinned. He frowned in confusion, then I snapped my fingers. The explosion shook the base of the castle, and Tanner was thrown off of his throne.

I quickly teleported away, and I would have been surprised if everyone in the city didn't have a heart attack. Hilarious. I materialized back at the Old Canterlot castle, where I found no one.

Not a single soul occupied the halls. For a second I was frightened, but then I found the note. It read: _We figured you'd freak out a bit when you discovered we were gone. Twilight relocated us to a safer spot, past the desert. Also, I got some intel for you. Detrot actually has the highest concentration of slaves originating from Ponyville. Don't ask how I figured it out, just get there. There's one I know you'll be happy to see. -Sara._

I guess that settled it, because I immediately set off to the city. I knew the location from a few maps, so it wasn't a problem. I materialized inside the city, but found no wanted posters of me. I guess word traveled slowly in the Tanner monarchy.

I was greeted by a passing stranger, who tipped his hat. I couldn't help but laugh at the irony. He was probably going to be killed by the man he was trying to be polite to. I couldn't find the slave purchase area, because the building were all of around the same height. First stop: the market. It was outdoor, with stands selling various foods.

Sara was right. I immediately recognized several mares and stallions; regardless of their age. The first I picked out was Big Macintosh, from the farm. I jogged over to him, who was managing the apple stand.

"What can I do ya fer?" He asked solemnly.

"Mac, I know you well enough from your sister. You know me," I said. He squinted, then relaxed.

"Eeyup. Thought you died," He stated.

"I got better, and now we're getting out of here."

"Great. Any ideas?" He asked.

"Random teleports. Prepare yourself in a few minutes," I said. Macintosh nodded, and I jogged away. After pointing out several more and giving my instructions, I left the area, and entered a different one. I figured I might find one or two in the comedy club.

Correct.

I immediately picked one out. She was standing behind the bar, skillfully using her wings to mix drinks. Her gray coat and blonde mane were well kept, and I only one mare with a bubble cutie mark.

I stepped over, and gave her a tap on the shoulder. "What can I getcha?" She asked.

I took a seat in one of the bar stools. "Just a water."

She filled a glass, and set it on the counter. "That all?"

"Mind if we chat?" I asked. "I don't have any friends."

"Sure. People always seem nicer in this city anyway," She said. "Any topics in mind?" I couldn't believe she was so nice to a human.

"My past, your past. Whichever, Ditzy," I said casually.

"Been awhile since I heard that name. Let's hear about yours," She said.

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that," Then I dropped it. "Screw it. I'm tired of the surprise charade. Ditzy, It's me, Brad! I'm back from the dead on order of the gods, and I'm here to bust you out!"

She just stared at me, open mouthed. "Did Tanner put you up to this?" She said angrily. "Did he pay you to masquerade as him, and give all of us false hopes?!"

"No! I can prove it, too!" I defended.

"How in Tartarus can you prove something like that?"

"This is gonna hurt, but... No human except for me knows about Dinky."

She just stared blankly for a few seconds, then her eyes began to fill with tears. She was quickly overcome with a wave of tears, and collapsed on the floor, weeping.

I put hand on her shoulder. "You alright?"

She looked up at me, smiling. "Let's get out of here," She said.

"Great. Be prepared for a teleport from the city in a few minutes," I said. She nodded, and I exited. No more sneaking around.

I brought forth my wings, and flew up into the air above the city. I amplified my voice, and shouted, "Hello, citizens of Detrot!"

Pretty much everyone looked up at me. "I'll be taking the ponies now!" I began to weave conceivably one of my most difficult spells. I first sent out a radar wave, and located Twilight in the Eastern mountains. I then proceeded to find, and target every equine life force in the city. I would both be attacking and saving.

I enveloped each and every pony in a white veil of magic, then forced more magic inside each veil to create a shockwave. However, many shockwaves were more powerful than I intended, and several buildings began to collapse.

"Teleport time!" I shouted. I then proceeded to transport all of my targets to the location I discovered Twilight in. Upon arrival, I collapsed on the floor. Used a lot of magic in that one. Back in the castle, I would have had to put some of them outside, but an extremely roomy cave had been discovered in the mountains.

"Looks like you took my advice," Sara said from my side, then helped me up. "And Dash told me about the armory, and how you blew it the fuck up."

"Glorious, right?" I asked. "Seen Xavier lately?"

"Nope. He's been gone for days. I just hope he's still alive," Sara said.

"Where has he gotten to?" I wondered out loud. Once more, I quickly found more to attend to, preventing me from relaxing. "I have a few more things to attend to. Bring the newcomers up to speed while I'm gone!" Rather than waiting for objection or complaint, I teleported to the Raven City.

I re-entered in the city hall, where I found Sedrick mindlessly gazing out off the balcony. I gave him a tap on the shoulder, and he turned.

"Good, you're back. There's three people who wanted to see you, so I sent them to wait in your chambers," He told me. I nodded, and walked back to my room. I pushed open the doors, and was greeted with the sight of two women and one man, all grinning broadly at me.

The man walked up the me, and set his hands on my shoulders. "Why didn't you visit when you got back?" I recognized the voice.

"Sorry, Roran. I'll make sure to pay you a visit next time I come back from the dead," I replied sarcastically. "Rika and Reana, I assume?" They nodded.

"Advice for you," Reana said. "Don't ever get older."

"Don't really have that option," I reminded. "What's new?"

"Well," Roran said, putting his arm around Reana. "Meet my wife!"

"When did you guys get together?" I asked.

"Around a year after you died," Reana said, then paused. "That had to be the strangest thing I've ever said."

I laughed. "Sounds right. Anything new with you, Rika?"

"Nope. Haven't dated since the double date. The dragon sort of ruined things, and I haven't found anyone that interests me. Plus, your immortal, which renders you pretty ineligible."

"True. Get out there and find a man, will you?" I recommended. "Also, the war's back on. There's no way I'll get away with destroying Tanner's arsenal, and blowing up one of his cities."

"Great. Been itching to fight for the last ten years, and I need a good one. We'll spread the word, and get the Ravens back in it," Roran said.

"Great to know I can count on you. I'll be back to check on you, go talk to Sedrick about weapons training for the ones lacking in it. Bye!" They all replied in kind, and I teleported, far away from any known form of civilization. I had a new plan, and the equine army needed a figurehead, a figurehead who wasn't me. I sat cross-legged on the rocky ground, and closed my eyes. I had a new idea; I just hoped I had enough power to do it.

I was about to attempt to access the realm of the gods.

I had been there before, so, in theory, I should have been able to teleport there. I began to concentrate my power, all of it, for the spell. I had reason to believe that the gods lived in an entire other dimension, which would require immense power to access.

I began to bring forth the needed spell, and then put all of the concentrated power into it. Then I let it fly. I was enveloped in an orb of light, then disappeared from this world. Thankfully, I succeeded. I landed in the throne room full of gods, and collapsed. I recovered quickly, then chuckled at the awestruck faces of the gods and goddesses.

"This a new one," Rokon said in his equine form.

"Agreed," Celestia said.

"I need a favor," I said.

"You dare demand from the gods?!" One of the Gryphon gods said.

"Not a demand. A favor. Celestia and Luna, could you both come back to the mortal world?" I asked. "We need a figurehead in this war, and I think they'll react well to the chronological goddesses, being their rulers and all."

Celestia and Luna looked at one another, and nodded. "We will go," Luma said.

"Fantastic! I wasn't expecting that to be so easy!" I said.

"It's not," Celestia said smugly.

"What?"

"We have requirements. We forgot to tell you when you left, but you can't tell anyone that we are goddesses. Did you?" Luna inquired.

"I can't say I have," I replied.

"Good. As far as we know, the conduits are the only ones who have met gods, besides anyone who's ever met us," Celestia said.

"Can we go now? I'm afraid the army will get razed if I stay too long," I stated.

Luna smiled. "Very well." She spread her wings in the air, and her horn began to glow. We were zapped right to the entrance of the cave, where we were met with the surprised looks of everyone inside, then the cheers.

"The princesses are back!" Echoed from several places in the cave, then Twilight burst forth from the crowd. Tears occupied her eyes, and she tackled Celestia to the ground.

"You're back!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Brad convinced his Grandfather to return us to life," Celestia lied.

I went along with it. "Didn't take much."

"Now we can start the fight!" Twilight cheered.

"After I'm done," I said. "I still need to gather the rest of the species."

"Allow us," The monarch sisters said simultaneously. Their horns began to glow brightly, and the air around us began to shimmer. Suddenly, the entire plateau we stood on flashed a brilliant gold, and was then occupied by ponies. "We got all of them," Celestia said.

"That was a helluva lot easier than my way," I supplied.

"Ponies of Equestria!" Celestia said in an amplified voice. "We have returned to fight once more, and this time, we will not lose!" Her horn flashed, and an identical flash enveloped every one of us, except for me. The ponies now stood, fully equipped with armor and weapons, except for Twilight and the rest of the Bearers, who had been teleported towards the front.

"These," Luna said, "Are for you." Her horn flashed, and the Element necklaces and Tiara began to glow from the gem.

The necklaces stopped glowing, and I felt a warm sense of peace radiating through the air. Then I got my idea. "Luna?"

"Yes?"

"Can I try something?"

"You don't need my permission. You have as much status as I do," She stated. I nodded, then enveloped each of the necklaces and tiara in a veil.

I slowly began to modify the Elements. Tampering with the strongest magical artifact in the universe, fuck yeah. I began to extend the golden metal, covering their bodies in the material. I began to shape the metal into a more detailed shape, adding hinges around the face to move the faceplate, and disconnecting the joints so they could move. I stood back and admired my work. Before me now stood six armored mares, ready for battle.

"I never would have thought about that," Celestia admired. "The Elements can't be broken, and with Luna unlocking the advantages, they'll be unbeatable."

"Fantastic. Where are we going first?" I asked.

"I can answer that," Jack said from the left. "The sight that used to be Ponyville is the first strike. Brad, like usual, you'll lead the mages. I'll manage pretty much the entire front lines, and Sara recently figured out how to make wings, so she'll lead the Pegasi. I wasn't planning for the Princesses, so just do what you want. I'm sure you'll think of something."

"I'll get the Ravens. We're gonna raze this city to the ground," I said, then teleported to the front gates of the city. I had wanted to make a badass call to war, but nooo, Sedrick had to have everyone at the front of city already. I looked at him, standing in front of the crowd, and he nodded his approval.

I amplified my voice. "Listen up! Mages, you'll be with me! When we get to the battlefield, look for the girl with blood-red hair; she's leading the airborne forces! Let's move!" I pointed skyward, and everyone took off. We soared through the sky until we reached the needed spell to transport the entire army. You remember that spell. I cast it, and we appeared over the marching Equine army. We gently flew above it while I gave my instructions to the mages, which were to blast spells in any direction a human was in. I told Roran and Sedrick to stay with me.

"I don't want to get stuck in a fight I can't win," I supplies. "You can help me find and kill the stronger ones in seconds."

"Agreed. You don't need a die a second time," Sedrick said.

"Let's just get this done," Roran said impatiently .

"Great. We just have to wait for Jack to give the signal," I said. We flew in silence for the rest of the two hour trip, which is hard for me. I'm talkative. When we reached Ponyville, we were met with a terrible sight. Expected by all, but still terrible.

Tanner had figured us out.

His armies had mobilized to the city, and were there to meet us in combat. They had less than us, but not by much. A massive lightning bolt shot into the sky, which could only be the signal. The battle started in an instant. Both armies charged at the same time, while Roran, Sedrick, and I tried to pick out targets from above the battlefield.

Suddenly, three identical men of around twenty appeared in front of us. They all had brown hair, and piercing blue eyes. They all wore smirks.

"Shit," I complained. "Looks like three. Glad I brought you guys."

"We are the Nameless Three," they all said at exactly the same time. Cryptic as hell. "Prepare to meet a swift death."

"That's odd," Sedrick said. He summoned his war hammer, and me and Roran followed suit with my scythe and his dagger. Roran set his dagger ablaze, and Sedrick's hammer began to radiate a chilling energy. I figured, "Why not?" and charged my own weapon with electricity.

They all drew a short sword from their belts, and raised them in a defensive stance. We made the first move, and charged them at the same time. Sedrick took the left, Roran took the right, and me middle. We all swung our weapons, which were instantly blocked by the three, and when I said instantly, I meant it. I didn't even see them move. One second the sword was there, the next it was blocking my blade.

I didn't even have time to move back. They moved like light, slashing me across the arm. The same was done to my companions, and we moved back. They then moved back to back, and held their swords out in front of them. They flipped their swords sideways, so the blade was horizontal.

They all spoke in unison. "Spin formation." They began spinning, reaching a rotary velocity unmatched by any other. They began to shift ever so slightly, then came right at us. Luckily, our reflexes were good enough to dodge the oncoming tornado of blades, and they roared past us.

"How do we beat someone this fast?" Roran questioned.

"I have one idea, but it's not a good one," I said.

"I bet it's better than dying!" Sedrick exclaimed.

"That depends. Can you handle moving faster than light?" I asked.

"Give it a go!" Roran suggested.

"Alright." I closed my eyes, and focused on myself, my friend, and my son. I had never used Speed of Darkness to benefit anyone but myself, so this was new. Luckily, it worked. The spell took hold, and we started the attack. The Three stopped spinning, and put away their swords.

"We cannot allow you to win," They said in unison once more. "Fire wave!" They shouted, then a solid stream of fire came at us in a wide birth. We ducked, and the blaze flew right over out heads.

"Separate them!" I commanded. "Fight them all seperately!" We moved towards them with our newfound speed, and each grabbed one. We began to drag them apart, and all attempted to break free. I stopped mine with a punch in the ribs, then moved us a decent distance away. He wriggled free, and drew his sword again. He swung it at my side, but I was quick to defend with my scythe. The sword deflected harmlessly of the my weapon, which I swung into his knee. It buckled, and I kicked him in the shin.

He glided back on invisible footing, and glared at me. He then performed the unexpected, with was throw his sword at me. It went right through my wings, which I chose to remove in favor of floating.

"You stand no chance. I am the embodiment of power," He said boldly.

"Bit of an ego there, eh?" I rebuked.

He balled both hands into fists. "Do not patronize me. Prepare to meet your maker." Another sword materialized in his right hand, then another in his left. He crossed them both, then a beam shot from the point of intersection.

"Shit!" I swore while rolling out of the way. I responded with a bolt of lightning, which was harmlessly conducted by his weapons, the energy absorbed by the leather grip. I was trying to use the forbidden art perfect for just such a magic user. Sadly, there was no way it would work on an enemy like Tanner, he's too powerful. But if I was correct, this would work, if I could remember it.

He a volley of lasers, and I simply dodged them. I removed by golden spell book, and began flipping through the pages while zooming around at the speed of darkness. I eventually found the spell I was looking for, but before I could cast it, a laser clipped my knee.

It burned the flesh, and threw off my focus long enough to stop my hovering. I began to fall, and the man looked down at me. I kept falling and reading the spell at the same time, and thanks to the speed-reading spell, I finished the complicated spell before I hit the ground.

He began to descend quickly, brandishing his sword menacingly. I raised my hands, and cast the spell, which was more of a curse. "Dark Inhibitor!" I shouted, and a ring of shadow shot from my hands. I flew right at him, becoming more of a U-shape in the air. The shape struck him, but did not slow his descent. It began to wrap around him, but not hindering his progress. The spell coiled around his abdomen, then disappeared. It had done it's job.

I quickly suspended myself and rolled to the side. He flipped around, intent on landing on his feet. Rather than that, he just fell right by me.

"Why won't my magic work?!" He cried just before he hit the ground, silencing him.

I looked back at my friends, who continued to battle the remaining two magi. I quickly spread my wings and zoomed over Sedrick, all while returning my scythe to my hands, which I had dropped. I hovered behind Sedrick's foe, then struck. I pointed the blade downwards, and brought it down on his skull. It drove right through his brain, killing him instantly. Sedrick thanked me, and we looked back at Roran.

He kicked his adversary into the air above him, and launched a fireball at him. It exploded on impact, sending him further into the sky. Roran flipped around so he faced upwards, and readied a spell.

Too late.

The Unnamed man threw his sword at Roran. It struck him directly in the chest, and Roran began to fall.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

I've Got a Rival

"Roran!" I cried out, and readied a spell, fueled with rage. I don't know if we've been over this before, but if you make a fully realized mage mad, nothing goes well. I was so mad, I didn't bother to think carefully. I placed my palms end to end, and shouted, "Lunar Blitz!" The beam came surging from my palms, and removed all traces of the man from this plain of existence. I quickly flew downwards, and landed next to Roran, who lying on the ground. He was bleeding heavily, and the sword had been thrown with pinpoint accuracy. It had run through his heart, and it was clear he had little time left to live.

He coughed up a bit of blood. "Looks like I took a little hit."

"Yep," I said sadly.

"I don't think I'll be coming back from this one," He said. He looked up at the sky. "You think Elysium is real?"

"I know it is. I've been there."

"Then I'll buy you a drink when you get there." He reached weakly inside of his pocket, and took a coin, which was valued at fifty Keeton. He placed it in my hands. "Told you I'd pay you back." He closed his eyes, never to open them again.

His spirit began to rise from his body, and I watched. The door appeared, and he walked through it. That was the last I'd ever see of a moving Roran.

I stood up, and Reana burt through the trees behind me. "I saw someone fall!" She then realized just what had happened. She collapsed on her knees, and shuffled over to her now deceased husband. She began sobbing heavily, but I didn't know what to do. She would be sadder than myself, but there was nothing to stop me from avenging him I instructed Sedrick to stay with her, and soared into the sky. I zoomed over to the airspace above the city, and readied myself. I just hoped no one was inside, because they wouldn't live through what I was about to do. I raised my arms skyward, and began charging energy into the air around the city. Tanner must have realized what was happening, because a giant blue flash enveloped the entire human army, and they were gone. Even the dead ones.

I whispered to myself, "I swear, on my own blood, there will not be an inch of stone in this city when I'm finished here." I had charged enough power into the atmosphere. I yelled out, "Let this signify the new era!" I had to make a new name for my improvised spell, because nothing I could do was black anymore, beside the Inhibitor curse. "GEYSER OF LIGHT!"

The city erupted in destructive forces, sending beams of magic into the air, all around. I probably put a hole in Ozone with that spell, and then some. When I finished, only flat, bare ground stood where the city once did.

Cheers of victory began to echo from the army, and I floated down to the earth. I was barely conscious from magical exhaustion; I had used a bit much. The gravity of the recent loss now weighed heavy on my mind. I blamed myself. I thought his death could have been prevented.

I decided not to find Reana; I thought she needed to be alone. This was the last time I would see any of my Raven friends for a while, but I didn't care. Celestia teleported in front of me, a sad look on her face. "I'm aware of your loss. Go, spend some time in the sky. I'll tell everyone what happened."

I nodded, and took off. I laid down on a cloud, and rested my head on its soft surface. I just sat there, not knowing what to do. I received a poke on the shoulder, and found Rainbow Dash standing next to me.

"Whaddaya want?" I asked in an exasperated manner.

"Just thought you might need somepony to talk to. I don't really know how you feel, though. I didn't have any family," She explained.

"How about a casual conversation?" I suggested. "Haven't had one of those in over ten years."

Dash chuckled. "Humor. Don't get much of that lately."

"Nope. Gotta spice up our victory somehow."

"I'll just go. Maybe I'll send Fluttershy up. She's better with stuff like this," Dash said, then dove off the cloud. I stood up, and walked over to the edge. I leaned off, and fell. I flapped my wings at just the right time, and landed on the ground.

"Looks like my strategy went well," Jack said from behind me. "We only lost thirty soldiers."

"I think they gave them skill as well as armor," I observed. "What's the next sight?"

"We'll hit Cloudsdale," He said. "It's the mage barracks. It'll be special ops, though. Only a few going. Sara taught me the wings thing, so it'll be you, me, and Dash. Sara wants to stay behind and figure out the archers."

"Great. Dash!" I yelled. Dash trotted up to us.

"Next mission. We're gonna take out Cloudsdale. They turned it into a mage capital, so it'll be tough," I said.

"Great. Been eager to sack those bastards for a while," She agreed. "Teleport away!"

"Oh, and no one actually know that we're going on this," Jack stated. "Reinforcements are not an option."

"Teleporting!" I shouted, then sent us off. We re-entered in the airspace below Cloudsdale, and all took flight. Jack spread out a set of brown wings, and we hovered.

"Okay," Jack said. "Here's the plan. We're gonna play the total warfare game. Destroy all the supplied that they need. Food, shelter, spare nothing. Next, we trigger the weather generator and freeze the humans out of the remaining cities."

"Sounds good," Dash stated.

"Cloaking." I then proceeded to cloak us. "Make sure you aren't discovered. Dash, you'll get the weather generator; I'm sure you're the only one who knows how it works. Me and Jack will take care of the rest."

We all nodded, then broke through the cloud surface. Dash separated, and headed to the left. Jack and myself headed to the left. I think. You can't hear footsteps on clouds, and Jack was invisible. Regardless, I know I was heading that way.

I crept toward the food storage, which was clearly labeled as such. I pushed open the swinging door quietly, and entered the room. It was filled to the the brim with foods of all sorts, even meats. Admittedly, I was tempted, but I didn't. Now that I could speak to animals, it felt weird.

I established a mental link with Jack._ "Can I forsake stealth?"_

_ "Hell no. Just set the buildings on fire, on the inside. It'll take then more time to notice, and make it easier to escape,"_ He replied.

_ "Fine._" I broke the link, and lit a small ball of flames. I set a few wooden items on fire, and exited. As I exited, a man shirked the opening of the door off as a draft. I took a few steps forward, then everything went to Tartarus. A man bumped into me, and fell to the ground, he was suspicious at that point, of course, but when it really went bad when he reached out and touched my cloak.

"Who's practicing an invisibility spell?" He asked.

"Uh... Jonny?" I lied weakly. "Shit."

His eyes narrowed, then literally lit up. They then widened. "Enemy mage!" He cried out.

I uncloaked, and ran. Stealth time was over. "Shitshitshitshitshit!" I yelled as I ran from a horde of inept mages.

Inept. Pretty comical, looking back on it.

Remember the finger gun spell? Well, I readied that, and shot a few times. I struck two of them down, and missed the third shot. I had few options, and no time to ready a crowd control spell, so I did the next logical thing. I simply jumped off the cloud.

None of them followed, so I brought forth my wings and flew over to the direction Dash went in. I broke through a wall, and, luckily, into the weather generator room. Dash was fidgeting with the machine, obvious signs of struggle on her face. I guess the area had some sort of ward on it, because I could now see her. She frowned, shouted "Celestia damn it!" Then kicked the machine. It roared to life, and cold winds began to blow from the many connecting pipes. Dash chuckled, and looked at me.

"I thought you were burning the food," She said.

"Did. Got caught, and there may or may not be a horde of angry mages about the come flooding at us." As if on cue, a couple of mages teleported into the room, the both of them armed with daggers. Dash shrugged, and charged one.

She kicked him in the face, which isn't really something a human can take. He crumpled on the floor. Another appeared, and grabbed her by the waist. The other, which was surprisingly fast, managed to spin around me, grab my arm, and pin to the cloud floor. He dug his knife into my neck a bit and drew a slight amount of blood, but I wasn't focused on that. There was a form coming at us from the air, very fast. The form crashed through the wall, and tackled the figure from my back. It, assuming to be a she, judging from the bulkier features than the males I had spoken with, was revealed as a Griffon.

I didn't know here, but Dash sure did. Dash spun from her assailant's grip, and delivered a swift kick to the nuts. He fell to the floor, and Dash embraced the Griffon.

"Gilda, am I glad to see you!" Dash exclaimed.

"Still mad about that one time?" The Griffon, now identified as Gilda, said.

"It's been over eleven years; I think I'm over it," Dash replied.

"Can we just finish up here?" I asked. "Stealth has pretty much gone out the window, and I think there's more where these guys came from!"

They ignored me. "How's ya find me?" Dash asked.

"Pops told me about restarting the war, so I came right over. I just guessed when I saw Cloudsdale in chaos," She replied.

Another man burst through the door. "Guys!" I complained.

"Got it!" I voice from outside the door said, and knife then protruded from the man's chest. Jack peeked through the door, and walked over. "What part of 'Stay Stealthy,' don't you understand?"

"He bumped into me," I defended.

"There's a shitload of them," Jack said. "But they're all weak as hell. Make a game out of it?" He suggested.

"Sure." I shot my finger gun at a another one of them. "One."

We departed, and I summoned my scythe. Jack, Dash, and Gilda were all killing machines, and in addition to myself, we were wiping the floor with these guys. I was spinning in circles, holding my scythe outward. It was like a helicopter blade, but more deadly.

Three hours later, we had pretty much killed everyone, and those who lived had fled. "Two hundred and sixty-three!' I boasted.

"Three hundred and four," Jack topped me with.

Dash was next. "Three hundred and eight." Just like an asshole on that Price is Right show.

Gilds killed all of us. "Four hundred and twenty-eight," She bragged.

"Never really thought I'd be competing over who killed the most men in battle," I said. "First time for everything, I guess."

"I can't believe I got beat by a horse," Jack complained.

"She's got one of the most powerful artifacts in existence. I can't even begin to comprehend how much more powerful they are than me," I explained.

"Just have to figure out how to use it," Dash stated.

"Any more targets today?" I asked.

"No," Jack said. "I don't think we have any-" He was cut off by a loud explosion from the weather generator building, and we all dropped the conversation to investigate.

we arrived at the building quickly, and burst through the doors. A man, about my height dressed entirely in black, was standing next to the sabotaged generator. The thing was, his clothes were identical to my own, except black. He turned towards us, and I got the biggest scare of my life.

He was me.

Well, sort of. His skin and hair were a solid black, the opposite of my own. His eyes were a piercing green opposite of my own. He grinned, then disappeared in a black flash.

"That," Jack said, "Was the creepiest thing I've ever seen."

"Agreed," I replied. "Let's get back to the army." I teleported us out of the cloud city, and back to the waiting forces. "I'll be off. I need to go check on my city."

The three I had fought with nodded, and I teleported to Raven City. Or, what I thought was Raven city.

Nothing was left.

Someone had completely razed it to the ground. Not even the the marble base was left, though the portal to the Grounds had survived and now lay in the base of the crater. However, there was only one thing on my mind, and that was that some payback was in order. Even though a large population was in the army, several had remained in the city.

I teleported to the portal, and unlocked it with my scythe. I stepped inside, then sat on the ground. Though dangerous it may have been, I did it anyway. I began to concentrate my efforts on absorbing magic. When no shock wave pulsed from my body, I knew I was good to go. Guess I was strong enough to take it in. Magical energies began to pulse through my very being, filling me with a new energy. I only had to spend ten minutes absorbing energy to have taken in more than enough to double my power.

I stepped back through the portal, used my magic to locate a power gauge syringe, and summoned it to my hands. I jabbed it into my hands, but rather than giving me an accurate reading, the six-digit display ticked to six 9s.

"Perfect," I said to myself, then teleported right to the front doors of what used to be Canterlot. I blasted them right off their hinges, much to the surprise of the citizens inside. I placed all the power I had at the ready, ready for anything.

I began to radiate a pure red energy. This wasn't just normal magic, but I was involuntarily using my powers as a child of death to amplify my own further. I stomped through the city, cracking the emerald pavement with each step. I reached the doors of the castle, and blasted them apart. Stepping inside, I found another Ben.

"I'm baaack," He taunted.

I shot a death glare at him, and my vision flashed the kind of red my eyes had turned. I moved faster than I had in my life. This time, I wouldn't be letting him just be revived after I killed him, but I would be placing him in a much worse state. I moved behind him instantly, and pulled back my hand. I drove it forward with such force, and impacted his neck as hard as I could without decapitating him. I struck just under his hairline, and I felt a satisfied snap.

It was not bone I had broken, but I had damaged his brain stem. He fell to the ground, not dead, but he wouldn't be able to move any longer. I was that cruel. Rather than finding my way through the modified castle, I simply blasted through the ceiling into where I knew the throne room was.

However, I found no Tanner, just the odd double from Cloudsdale. He was applauding sarcastically.

"Bravo. You've found me."

"Was it you who-" He cut me off.

"Destroyed the city? Yes. Also, this is a fight you can't win. I share your thoughts, and as you gain power, I do the same. Except I'm evil. If we fight, it will never end."

"Don't care," I growled. "I don't care if you're my double, I don't care if I leave here in a bodybag, but rest assured. You will not survive this."

"So be it." His fists sparked to life with lightning. I lit mine with fire, and the fight began. Our moves and tactics were identical. Each combination was countered with it's twin. We both jumped backwards, and I summoned my scythe. He summoned one as well, though it was white with a green line around the edge of the blade, exactly the opposite of my own.

I charged him, and he charged me. A blue flash of light came through the windows, so could only assume Tanner had teleported the people away. Good. Either me or this city was going down.

Or scythes clashed in synchronization, the hit being blocked by an identical one. At first, I thought he was right. That we really were actually exact equals in strength.

Ravena's voice pulsed through the air. "Remember what I said about the scythe..." Then faded away.

Of course. The scythe was said to have power beyond that of any other weapon. I didn't know how much it could do, and I hadn't even tried to use any of it's power before, but I decided to do it anyway.

"So Tanner even got the weapon right, eh?" I confirmed.

"I'm an exact copy of you. There's nothing you can do that I can't," He explained.

"Except for one. That scythe? It's just a piece of sharpened metal. Mine, however is unique." I pointed it in his direction. "And I'm going to use it to kill you."

He burst out laughing. "What?! You think that's going to make a difference?"

"If it doesn't, then we'll probably both die. Here we go!" I began to search the very fibers of the scythe. Really, I was searching for the consciousness that first called to me in the weapons chamber, but any sort of power was good, really.

I found it.

The voice projected into my thoughts._ "I see the time is at hand. Very well. I shall teach you to call upon my power. We shall become one, wielding the power of your ancestor."_

I didn't have to give a reply. The scythe began to glow, giving of a power unlike any other. It was the energy provided for battle by the gods themselves, and it was in my control.

"No running now." The voice that came from my mouth came with the voice of the scythe, both speaking at once.

"What?! Why aren't I getting stronger?!"

"You're an unholy artificial creation, and this power can only be wielded by the chosen king. In all realism, nothing can possibly amount to the amount of power I possess while using this. Look." Without even thinking about it, I created a new spell, designed to gauge the magic limit of it's target with no limit of digits. The display hovered before me, ticking around until the numbers stopped.

_15,053,420._

"I'm sure that if I released all of the power I have right now, I'd destroy the planet. But instead, I'm going to use it to destroy you."

His eyes widened with fear; he knew there was no way he was going to win this. He ran and smashed through the window, spreading his wings in an escape attempt. I placed my own on my back, and teleported to him. He swung with his scythe, but it impacted my own. My scythe pulsed a white energy, and his weapon shattered.

"Told you." I turned the scythe so the blunt end faced him, and smashed it into his side. He flew at top speed into the courtyard of the castle, and struck the ground harshly. I teleported effortlessly to his side, and stomped on his chest.

I flew up into the sky, and established a mental link with everyone I knew, which was the whole army. That was how much power I had right then.

_ "Look towards Canterlot. What you are about to see is power personified,"_ I said egotistically, then disconnected myself.

Knowing full well that I most likely wouldn't be able to call upon this magic easily later on, but I went overkill anyway.

I flew up into the sky, and began to weave the most powerful spell I had ever created; one that could dwarf the destructive power of the Lunar Blitz by thousands.

I focused every bit of my immense power on mt scythe and muscles. After that, I didn't even have to think. I plunged toward the ground, and struck my clone into the ground. The resulting explosion was unregistrable on any scale.

A huge mushroom cloud burst forth from the ground, obliterating the structures around me. A few seconds later, the smoke cleared around me enough to see that I had utterly destroyed my clone. The ground started to crack around me, but I was too tired to even bring forth my wings.

The ground fell from beneath me. I began to fall to the ground._ "Whelp, looks like this is it. No regrets."_ I closed my eyes, and waited for death to embrace me.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I'm Seeing Rainbooms

As I fell, I looked up at the sky.

_ "I'm going to miss this life. Maybe Celestia can take care of Tanner,"_ I thought.

I squinted, thinking I saw movement in the sky. It was a long way down, might as well enjoy the falling emeral rubble around me.

I did see movement, and to this very day, I'm grateful to the Pegasus that showed up. Scootaloo was flapping her wings as fast as she could, trying to catch me. I could see the wind resistance around her.

I made a weak gesture for her to turn away, but she kept coming. I faced the ground, and spread out my arms and legs. Only mere seconds until I would hit the ground. I smiled, having no regrets. Looking back at Scootaloo, who was going incredibly fast. However, she was still to far away to catch me. I looked back at the ground, and closed my eyes.

Boom.

The sound caused me to snap my eyes open as I was mere yards fron the ground. The sky had filled with a purple and orange array of colors, and exploding from it's center was Scootallo, trailing a similar streak. She sweeped under me, and I landed on her back. She skillfully evaded the falling rubble; instinct making every move for her.

She flew from the falling mass of gemstone, and directed us back to the camp. We had to be flying a mach ten, because she made it back in mere minutes.

She set me down on the ground, and then collapsed herself. We were both tired, me magically and her physically.

Jack helped me up. "You're crazy, you know that?"

"Yep. Just glad Scootaloo decided to come and do something about it. Would've died," I said.

"Don't mention it," Scootaloo sighed.

"Don't mention it!" Dash said, galloping toward her. "You did a Rainboom!"

"Guess all it took was deadly motivation," I mentioned. "Can one of you do knock down a mountain so I can try?"

That earned a small laugh from those around me. Twilight burst from the crowd, wearing an urgent look.

"There's something you have to see," She said. "We found Xavier."

No more words were exchanged. Twilight led me back to the edge of the army, where Xavier was lying on a rock. His hair was indeed grey, and his eyes had changed to fiery orange.

"So how are things?" He asked casually.

"Same old, same old. Just temporarily raised my power level to over fifteen million."

"That was you? I was four leagues away when I heard the boom, and the cloud. Who did the Rainboom?" He asked.

"Scootaloo. Where've you been? We could've used used you in the last fight. We lost Roran," I explained.

"My Grandpa told me to go away for awhile. I've found some crazy-ass artifacts, and there's a few you need to see. Also, I may have gained the ability to see through people's souls and their memories. Been quite useful to me. Those Griffons weren't too happy when I wanted to get inside their sacred catacombs."

"Why were you- I don't care. Twilight, get the next location from Jack, and mobilize the army," I commanded. Twilight nodded, and galloped away.

"You'll love this. I've been away, looking for the other artifacts created by the gods, besides the Elements. Be careful, though. All of these are indescribably powerful, and but not all of them are good. First up-" He reached into his bag, and pulled out a belt of white gold. "Is the Conduit's Belt. Not really sure if that's the actual name, but it works. It was designed to do one of two things: Either absorb power constantly and transmit it constantly if worn by a conduit, or temporarily make someone a conduit while it's worn. Take it. Watch out for the start, though. Pretty freaky stuff."

I took the Belt, and it unclipped itself. I snaked up my arm, and along my torso. It came to rest on my waist, flashed red, then stopped moving. "Woah. What else did you get?" I asked.

"This one's a personal favorite, but not the one I'll be using. This-" He took out a small knife. "Is the knife of Pain. Another name I made up. Doesn't matter where you stab them, as long as you stab the same place twice. I'll be giving this to Jack." He shoved the blade back in the bag.

"This one's specifically designed for Unicorns. It's called the Alicorn Amulet, and-" I stopped him before he could take it out.

"Might wanna keep that one out of sight. Awhile ago, Trixie used it to terrorize the citizens of Ponyville. Lots of bad history with them," I explained.

"Suit yourself. Oo!" He reached inside, and pulled out a bracelet. "You'll want this one, but you can only use it once. I suggest during a mage battle." He handed it to me, and I clipped it on just beside my regular set of bracelets.

"What's it do?" I asked.

"Don't want to ruin to surprise," he said happily. He reached inside once more. Pulling out an amulet depicting a set of wings, he said, "Dash'll want this one. It up the speed of a Pegasus a notch or twelve. And according to the god of wisdom, whose judgment I value, it allows the wearer to ensure that he or she doesn't do a Rainboom, purely with mental control. When she's wearing it, if she doesn't want to do a Rainboom, it won't happen."

"Alright. Just give me whatever else you have for me, then give what you will to the others," I requested.

"Just one more for you. I'm almost positive you'll like this more than that Arrow of Light. Come to think of it, I've never actually seen you use it. Anyway, check this out." He pulled out a small set of white gloves, inscribed on the backs with a strange series of symbols. "My grandpa told me not to give this to anyone who didn't have complete control over their magical abilities. So naturally, I deemed you the perfect candidate. The symbols on the back represent powerful elemental magic, and I was told you'd know how to cast it the second you put them on. Here."

He handed the gloves to me, and I put them on. New spells flooded my mind, ready to be cast at will. "Thanks," I told him.

"Don't mention it. Bye!" He teleported in a flash of bright orange. I started to walk back to the camp, and for the next destination.

Quite frankly, nothing happened in the next few hours. Celestia and Luna paired up to instantly transport the army to Manehattan, but it was deserted. Anyone who could teleport was sent to the remaining cities, but all came back negative. Every city in Equestria had been deserted, which, beside being easy takeovers, had no positive sides. No one just disappears like that, and nothing good could come of a full-scale mobilization.

"I'll send out a radar scan. Maybe then we can get a fix on the human armies," I said, then pulsed an echolocation magic wave. I found nothing, except for one relatively large area that returned nothing. The signal just stopped when it hit that point. A scrambler. "They set up a scrambler. Either they've left the planter entirely, or are in the area I can't scan."

"Good," Celestia said. "Jack, go scout out the area. You have the least chance of being noticed out of all of us."

Jack nodded, then disappeared in a flash of brown. I judged by the size of the scrambled range, pretty much the entire army could fit in there. If we went there, Tanner would attempt a full-scale assault on the Equine army. We would be outnumbered, but everyone kept themselves going with the thought of them being severely outmatched.

Luna took to the skies, and amplified her voice. "THIS IS IT! NOW IS THE LAST TIME ANY OF YOU WILL STAND ALONGSIDE EACH OTHER IN THE FIELD OF BATTLE, BECAUSE WE WILL BE WINNING! NOTHING SHALL KEEP US FROM TAKING BACK OUR COUNTRY, AND RETURNING FROM THIS BATTLE!" She looked down at me, signifying me to give my own speech. I spread my wings, soared up above the crowd, then blasted my voice up a notch or ten.

"RAVEN TRIBE! THESE MEN SOUGHT TO DESTROY US, TO ELIMINATE OUR VERY WAY OF LIFE! THEY EVEN DESTROYED THE CITY! NOW IS THE TIME FOR PAYBACK, TO GET THEM BACK FOR WHAT THEY'VE TAKEN FROM US! I KNOW NOT ALL OF YOU WILL BE WALKING BACK WITH ME, AND I MIGHT NOT BE WALKING BACK WITH YOU, BUT WILL YOU STILL FOLLOW ME INTO BATTLE KNOWING SUCH THINGS?!"

Cheered of positive origins rose from the army. "THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO HEAR! CELESTIA, GET US TO THE BATTLEFIELD!" I cheered, then Celestia's horn began to glow. The entire army was enveloped in golden field, and teleported right outside of the scrambler, but nothing could be seen from where we stood. I stepped forward about five feet, then stuck out my arm. I concentrated on absorbing as much power as possible as possible, and the air began to flicker, revealing a hidden campsite. But it was so much more, an entire forest of men and women, all armored and ready for battle.

Both armies stood in silence, and everything began with a single word.

"CHARGE!"

The equine army surged forward, the magically gifted battle expertise taking it's place. Tanner was here, I knew it. He wasn't hiding his power, which was easily greater than my own. I took to the skies, ready for the fight of my life. The two most powerful Conduits in existence ready for the end of the line.

Tanner appeared in the air in front of me. I put away my wings, and we both floated in silence. He spoke first.

"Remember those days back on Earth? We used to be friends, now here we are, about to start the battle of the ages."

"I'm sorry all this happened too. Trust me, I wish we could still be friends, just put all this to rest. But because of what you've done, you can't go free. I have to at least try."

"I agree. Shall we?" He proposed.

"We shall."

We took battle stances, and it was off. He drew his sword, and I summoned my scythe. He charged first, and slashed at my side. I parried with my own weapon, and kicked at his fists. The kick struck correctly, and his sword was knocked from his hands. He simply let it fall, and I felt his power spike. I returned my scythe, and readied my own magical attack. Clearly, the melee potion would be back, but magic was priority.

"Death's Flame!" He cried out, and a skull shapes fireball flew from his fists. I sidestepped, and launched a distractive bolt of lightning at him. If I wanted to get down to the battlefield, I had to try and end this as quickly as I could.

"Fireburst!" I yelled. This was one of the magicks the gloves gave me. I spout of solid flame flew seemingly from nowhere, and Tanner barely manage to dodge to geyser.

He set his fists on fire, and charged me. My own began to radiate freezing winds; one of the glove spells. I charged him, and struck at his ribs. He didn't block, and the puch collided. It left a frozen patch of ice where I had hit, but he had set my shoulder on fire as a result of my carelessness.

I took a few steps back, and looked down. The equines were losing. The human army was pushing us back, and nothing was going according to plan. I saw Jack, Sara, Xavier, the Princesses, and the bearers holding their own, but many were dying around them.

"See that?" Tanner taunted. "You can't win. Just give up, and I promise... Your deaths'll be quick."

"No," I replied. In my eyes, It was supermagic time. I fired a beam of light to the sky, which was purely was for distraction. I readied my more powerful arrays of spells, and cast the first one to come to mind.

"Speed of Darkness." I felt my strength and agility increase, ready for use. Next, before he could counter with something, I attacked. "Light Daggers!" Two little white daggers appeared in my hands, and I charged. He didn't move, which should have raised the red flag, but I struck his arm anyway.

"Ting!" The sound of metal hitting metal came from his arm. He raised his fist, and struck me in the ribs. The impact was like a sledgehammer, breaking two of them and cracking three. I moved back painfully, and healed them.

"What?" I questioned.

"Surprised? Metal skin spell. You can't do shit with physical attacks. Magic is the only way to go, which makes this much easier to do." Without warning, he dashed forward, and kicked me in the knee. I fell forward on my face.

He smirked. "This isn't your full power. Nothings this easy. Why're you holding back?"

He had broken my knee. I was in too much pain to reply. I began to heal it, but he stomped on my hand, breaking two of my fingers.

"Screw it. I'll just kill you, then the army." Backing up several feet, he placed his palms end to end, mocking my signature technique. "Lunar Blitz."

A thin beam of blue light shot from his hands, and straight at me. It was fast, but not faster than my savior. Xavier flee from the side, wearing winged boots that propelled hin through the air at mach speeds. He intercepted the attack, taking it in the chest.

He fell, and I caught his hand, and suspended him with magic.

"What the hell are you doing?!" I yelled.

"Be glad. That would've killed you. You're the best chance in this war. Don't let this be for nothing." He closed his eyes, and died right in front of me.

Just like that. Only minutes into the fight, one of the Conduits died. I teleported his body away, and my power began to spike from anger.

"So that's it? Kill your friends in front of you, and you go up in power? That's easy. I'll think I'll do that right now." He looked the battlefield, and Jack and Sara appeared in the sky next to me.

"Brad?" Sara asked. "What the hell's going on here? Did you get us up here?"

"No!" I replied. "Get out of here before he does something crazy!" I ordered.

"If he's going to try to kill us," Jack brandished the knife Xavier had brought him. "Then he's going to have a hell of a time taking on all three of us."

I nodded, but Tanner just grinned like a madman. He wiggled a finger. "I don't think so."

He disappeared. A millisecond later, a sword stuck in Jack's chest. "One down!" Tanner said crazily in his invisible state. I teleported him to the outskirts of the battlefield, just hoping he could survive. I looked back at Sara, and tried to teleport her away.

Too late.

Her neck twisted at an unsurvivable angle, and a small snap was heard. He broke her neck. Tanner appeared several feet in front of me, a crazed look in his eyes.

"How ya feelin'?" He asked.

No. Just like that, my three best friends were dead. Killed in the span of minute by the same man. I felt my power begin to rise up to unimaginable heights, but It still wasn't enough for him.

"I know you can go further. Let's fight, and see if I can figure it out." He charged me with his metal skin, and struck at my chest. I simply raised my arm to deflect the blow, taking on my own metal armor. I punched him in the nose, and he began bleeding.

"Better," He chanted, and kicked at my side. This one struck true, and I flew to the side. I launched a small magical projectile at him, but once more, he vanished. Re-appearing right in front of me, he grabbed my head, and forced me to look him in the eyes. I felt his gave boring through me, reading my memories.

He let me go. "So you have one more special friend. Why didn't you tell me you had a son?" He began to dash towards the crowd, trying to root out Sedrick. I followed him, but quickly lost sight of my enemy. I found him just seconds later, gripping my son's shirt collar. And though he was visibly struggling, Sedrick couldn't break free. Tanner raised a dagger, and drove it through his neck.

That was it. I couldn't hold back anymore. All three of my types of power were flaring up. The scythe, my own, and my powers of Death.

I involuntarily summoned my scythe, spread my wings, and lifted into the sky. My body was radiating power, but Tanner still brought forth his own wings to combat me. He couldn't have made a stupid decision.

All three of the powers were combining to form the deadliest combination possible, equivalent to that of the gods. My wings caught fire, but remained whole, and I felt my scythe bringing forth it's own power.

I raised the power gauge spell, and determined the power of both me and Tanner. His power: _25,067,526._

My own: _38,736,916_. A thirteen million difference.

Both were rising at a constant rate. I said with not a trace of anger in my voice, "You will not be walking away from this."

He grinned, and another sword appeared in his hand. I wasn't about to let him attack. He was going to suffer in the worst way I could possibly imagine, feel the worst pain I could inflict.

"Then come at me," He taunted.

My eyes narrowed, and my power spiked further. "So be it."

I charges him fast enough to make it seem like a teleport, and a flurry of punches followed. I struck him again and again, not one missed it's intended target. At one point, he raised an arm to block a hit, and it snapped like a twig, regardless of his armor spell.

I lowered a fist, and drove it into his stomach at mach speed. He flew towards the sun, and I followed. I repeatedly punched and kicked him further from the ground. Soon, I felt us reaching the atmosphere, and raised an oxygen-producing field around the both of us, not wanting him to die by mere suffocation.

We entered orbit, and zero gravity overtook us. I was still able to move quickly using my magic, so I did so. He tried to counterattack with a kick to my ribs, but I simply grabbed his ankle and snapped the bone in half. While he writhed in pain, I contacted Luna.

_ "Any new on the fight?"_ I asked.

_"Two things. One, Spike convinced the dragons to help, and we're turning the tides quickly. Second, how are you in space?"_

_ "No point in explaining. Set up a shield around the battlefield capable of withstanding the force of the moon hitting the ground. We'll be getting some hits soon."_

_ "Alright," _Luna replied. I broke the connection, and looked back at Tanner, who had healed his ankle. He threw his sword at me, but I knocked the blade to the side effortlessly.

"There's nothing you can do," I pointed out. "When you get to Tartarus, say hi to my Grandpa for me."

I quickly moved above him, closed my fists together, and drove them into his back from above with all the force I could muster. He flew back towards the planet, unable to regain control. The dust cloud his body produced was visible from where I floated in space, but he was still alive. I enhanced my vision tremendously and spotted him. He was pointing his hands at the winning army, and they were crackling with energy. Luna's barrier would provide some insurance, but I knew all too well that the amount of force he could put out was more than the more than the moon hitting the ground.

"Nope."

I beat my wings with maximum force, and flew towards the ground. I felt the wind whistling by my ears, but raised a barrier to resist the forces.

I watched him pulse magic into the air around him, the amount of force he was gathering able to easily wipe out both of the armies. He didn't care anymore, and was trying a suicide attack. Nothing mattered to him.

I began to close the distance as fast as I could. The winds was roaring by my form, and the mach cone I had seen in when Scootaloo did a Rainboom began to form around me. I beat my wings faster and faster, gaining speed at a constant rate.

Just as I dipped below the atmospheric layer, Tanner fired his laser. It wasn't the suicide attack I had expected, but I couldn't make it in time. Then, I remembered the bracelet Xavier had given me. I pressed the button on the band, not knowing what would happen.

I couldn't have asked for a better thing to happen.

The bracelet unclipped itself, and zoomed down to the Earth, faster than the laser. It landed on the ground in front of it, and exploded. The laser flew right into the light created by the wristband, but not out the other side. The bracelet had intercepted the attack, and left Tanner open.

I flew faster and faster as I dipped below the cloud layer. The mach cone around ne was getting more of a point, then I beat my wings one last time.

The mach cone exploded in front of me.

A burst of snow white light burst from my wings, and covered the sky. My speed instantly doubled, and a streak of fire followed me. I had done a Rainboom.

I flew right at Tanner, and readied my attack. Every bit of force I had was going into this, and there was no way he was going to live. He looked up at the last second, just to see his killer.

I threw my fist into his face at mach ten, and I felt it shatter under my knuckles. A burst of magic flew from my hand, and utterly vaporized him, along with every bit of ground within a hundred feet. A beam of solid magic flew from the earth around me, and when it settled, I stood on a lone pillar surrounded by a hole several feet deep.

I turned towards the army, and laughed at the stunned looks on their faces. Nothing was left of Tanner's body, so I checked my power level to make sure it was still reasonably high. _23,628,725. "Good enough."_

I teleported to the front of the Equine force. Nothing stood of the human army, and the dragons had left. I was happy that the country had been won back, but not for myself. In one day, all of my human friends had died, along with my son. I felt a hand on my shoulder, and turned to Rokon in his human form.

He flicked his white hair out of his eyes. "That was a heck of a display. I knew something was up when Tanner suddenly appeared in my judgement room. I sentenced him to eternal torture; where he has his innards cut out, then replaced every day."

"Thanks. Means alot that he's gonna suffer," I said.

The monarch sisters appeared in front of me, along with the bearers. "I can't believe that power!" Twilight exclaimed.

Celestia's horn began to glow. "Though the war may be over, I'm afraid I have some bad news. Girls, please step away while I relay this information to Brad," She ordered. The bearers walked away.

"I think I know this one," Rokon said.

"You most likely do," Luna said. "You won't like this, but we have to tell you something. This whole ordeal was predicted in prophecy. You, Tanner, and the humans were the catalysts for the entire war. The Ravens all knew this, but were required not to tell you. They were the ones assigned to the task of training the force of good, which was you. Now, they are required to return to Elysium as spirits."

"Bu- wha?" I questioned stupidly.

"Sorry," Celestia apologized. "We should have told you. The Ravens must leave, and you must stay."

I was surprisingly in acceptance with this. "You know what? I don't care. Everyone I care about is dead anyway."

"We know this, and we're sorry," Rokon said. "If you can find a way to make this more tolerable, I'm open to it."

Suddenly, the concept came to me. "Just one thing."

"Which would be?" Luna inquired.

"How much power would it take to bring every casualty of war back?" I asked. The question surprised them.

"Absolutely out of the question," Celestia told me.

"Really, you don't get to make that choice, sunny," Rokon said condescendingly. "You have enough power, no questions about that. However, that requires my approval to do it without necromancy." He smiled. "And you'll be getting it."

I grinned like a madman. "Oh god. I can't thank you enough."

"Just one restriction," Rokon said. "You can't bring back any humans."

I frowned. "Why not?"

"We can't have any more around here. We're willing to make an exception for you, but no one else. The chance of future attacks is too great," Rokon said.

Sadly, I knew it was true. Rokon offered his condolences. "Sorry. They went to Elysium, if it makes you feel better."

"Thanks. Now, stand back. I'm about to reform the country." I readied my power for one last time. The most powerful spell ever weaved, capable of bringing back every life lost in the war, and restoring the buildings destroyed. As you know, I was never good at conjuring, but I was going to do it anyway. I placed my hands on the ground, and began.

The power flowed from from my hands, and pulsed out several times. The green color returned to grass, and from where the battle had happened, we could see the life returning to the valley where Ponyville stood. The buildings began to construct themselves, forming once more the homes that several had occupied. The hanging castle of Canterlot was reforming on the cliffside, restoring it to it's former glory.

After I had felt the cities being restored, the hard part came. Thanks to a little power from my grandpa, I found the souls of those lost. I concentrated hard, and brought them back, all at the same time. The Griffons that were killed appeared in the kingdoms, and the few dragons returned to the mountains. Every single equine casualty of war returned around me, at the age they were at death. With the spell completed, I stood up. I had returned Equestria to how it stood before the war. Now came the part I decided would be best.

I stomped on the ground, using a bit of magic to raise a platform of stone for me to give my announcement. I watched to tear-filled eyes of the ponies, enthralled with the return of their dead friends and family. This was gonna be hard.

I amplified my voice just enough to get their attention. "Hello." The crowd quieted. "I've used my power to return those killed in war to life, and the land to its state ten years ago. Enjoy your time with them, because I intend to return this land back to the way it was before I even got here. All of you will be returned to youth, and have any memory of the war wiped from your minds. However, I am prepared to offer you one exception. Those of you who wish to keep your memories for whatever reason, may step forward now. However, I do not advise this. War is terrible, and most wish to forget it. Bu-" I was stopped by ten ponies who stepped forward from the crowd.

I recognized seven of them. Scootaloo, and the Bearers. The other three, however, were not known. All of the unknown ponies were around the same age as Scootaloo.

"All of you?" I confirmed.

Applejack spoke for the Bearers. "All of us wanna keep 'em. We kinda' figured that the Elements might wanna have that under their belts."

"Sounds good to me," I said. "What about the rest of you?"

Scootaloo spoke first. "I don't wanna forget this. I had a lot of hard times, but your first Rainboom isn't something you want to just erase."

"Good. The rest of you, what are your names?" I asked the three unknown ponies.

A Pegasus stallion stepped spoke next. He had a dark blue coat, and a white mane. His cutie mark showed a shooting star. "My name's Starstreak. My little little sister died in the war, and I don't want to forget how much she meant to me. Now, I care that much more."

"Great," I replied.

An Earth pony mare with a turquoise coat and seafoam-green mane was next. He cutie mark pictured a wave. "I'm Seafoam Shells. Quite frankly, I don't have a good reason, just that the few good times overshadowed the bad."

"That's good enough for me. How about you?" I asked, indicating the Earth pony stallion with an ash-grey coat and black mane. He bore a cutie mark of tornado.

"Name's Cyclone. Like Seafoam, I just wanna keep 'em."

"You sir, remind me of myself," I said.

I raised my hand. "Now, the final instruction. Under no circumstances are you allowed to tell anyone what actually transpired in the last ten years. It may trigger memories, and I don't want to have to deal with that. If any of you find anyone experiencing memory problems, ask Celestia where you can find me. Also, except for the bearers, because of the Elements, the four of you most likely won't be the same. If I had to guess, you probably won't even have the same talent as you do where you stand. My hair is the way it is as a result of magical defects, and I can, with almost complete certainty, that something about you will be different. Come to me if it's life threatening. Now to all of you: You will all wake up in your respective homes, like you just had a restful night. Luna, if you will?"

The night monarch's horn lit up, the sun lowered from the sky, and was replaced by the moon. "Thanks," I said gratefully. "Now, everything that has happened to you in the last ten years will be erased from your minds, and all will go back to normal. I repeat, everything will be normal. In addition, you will all be restored to the youth you once had. I'll live among you, but you won't know it. Farewell."

I sent out the youth-restoring pulse, and watched as the crowd rapidly decreased in age. I watched the mares turn the fillies, the stallions into colts. The older ponies were returned to the younger years, and those deceased with age returned to life. Then, I erased the memory. This was surprisingly easy, and was done in seconds. Everyone was teleported to their homes, and the sister goddesses departed as well. For a minute, I stood alone. I had kept my power, and assumingly remained immortal.

I wouldn't be able to remain human.

Seeing a human being would conceivably trigger erased memories. I had to conceal myself, and not let anyone but those could trust see who I really was. Using my shapeshifting abilities, I morphed into a Pegasus pony stallion. My coat and mane were white, and for added effect, I gave myself a cutie mark. It showed a raven in flight. My weapon bracelets remained on ny forelegs, and my eyes were still bright red. Nothing had changed but everything.

I needed a name, though. "Storm," I said to myself. "Storm Shadows. That'll work."

I walked around a bit, adjusting to my new form. When I found myself ready, I teleported to Ponyville. This was the start of my new life.

My life as Storm Shadows.


	6. Epilogue

Epilogue

"And that was the story of the Conduit," Storm Shadows said to the foals listening to the story of Bradford. Scootaloo was among them, listening with great interest. Of course, she had lived it. So had the others around her, but only she remembered it.

"How come your bracelets are the same as his?" Sweetie Belle asked him.

"I like to get into character when I read this," Storm lied. Scootaloo knew this was his journal, but couldn't say anything in front of the others.

"I love that book," Spike said. He had also been in on the reading.

"Now, remember to get here next week for the next reading. I'll see you then!" He exclaimed, and then the children began to leave. He stopped Scootaloo with a hoof on her shoulder.

"What's up?" She asked.

"I wanted to make sure nothing was going on. Have you told anyone about it? I see Sweetie and Applebloom haven't gotten their cutie marks, so I'd assume you haven't?"

"I kept the promise," Scootaloo confirmed. "But I'm still a bit miffed about my talent being changed, but I'm good. You'd think they'd be a bit more suspicious about a book with them in it."

Storm laughed. "But they're not. Now get back home now, I have a letter to write."

Scootaloo nodded, and Storm picked up a quill with his magic. Despite being an Pegasus pony, he was still a Conduit. No one knew this, of course, but he still secretly used his magic. The white glow enveloped the writing utensil, and it lifted into the air. It had been three months since he had turned everything back everything, and his life was good. He had bought a house relatively close to the library, and moved in. Not that he had much to move.

He opened the door, and walked outside. The letter had just been a convenient excuse to get out. He trotted through the town with a zip in his step. Every pony knew him, but didn't really know him. They knew his mask.

He had taken on an identity of general joy, always looking to the positive side of everything. Storm was now generally charismatic, willing to befriend anypony who came to him. He had become a bit of social butterfly, much unlike his previous identity. After all, of you wear a mask long enough, you become it, which is exactly what happened.

He had even considered dating. After all, he was now a pony, and nothing would be wrong with finding himself a fillyfriend. In fact, that's exactly what he did. He was on his way to meet her, and he thought it was going very well, all things considered. Realistically, Storm Shadows was required to find someone that could live forever, because of his own immortality. This limited his options severely, making his only eligible pursuits the Bearers or the Princesses, and there was something off to him about dating a god.

The destination was Sugarcube corner, where he would undoubtedly see the hyperactive Pinkie Pie, who had thrown him and his fillyfriend a party in celebration of their getting together. However, she was not the one he was going to see.

He stepped through the door, and found her. It was pretty hard to miss the rainbow-maned Pegasus. That's right. He had begun dating Rainbow Dash.

During their time together, Storm had found her to be much smarter than she let on. It was pretty funny when he found her reading, something that was really only seen in the field of Daring Do. She had completely stripped herself of her ego, in favor of a more modest personality. Though she still liked to boast the Rainboom every now and then. However, It had been a topic of debate between the two to reveal Storm's abilities for some time now.

Storm took his seat across from Dash, and they shared a smile. She had really warmed up to him, and they had a unique bond that couldn't be found anywhere else. Meaning, where else could you find two dating immortals?

"How's Scootaloo?" Dash asked.

"She's fine. The foals seem to like hearing my story every now and then," Storm replied.

"Good. I hate to see her struggle, but I can't really do much about how much her life's changed. Must be hard to know she has to rediscover her talent all over."

"It's worse to know you caused it. Shall we?" Storm proposed.

"Sure. Did you plan anything?" Dash asked.

"If you didn't, I was thinking we could just eat here. Who doesn't like a cupcake now and then?"

"I didn't. Now where's Pinkie?" She asked. "I just hope she doesn't-"

"Come out of nowhere?" Pinkie said from behind Storm, who proceeded to have a heart attack.

"Jeez!" He wheezed out. "Stop doing that! One of these days I'm going to have to figure out how you're doing that! It's faster than teleporting!"

"You'll never figure me out," Pinkie sing-songed. "The usual?"

"Nailed it," Dash said.

"Be right back," Pinkie stated, then trotted away.

"Remember how you asked me out? It was so embarrassing," Dash reminded him.

"Can't forget that," Storm said. He had convinced Twilight to ask her to come to the large cloud formation that had come through that day, and when she got there, he ignited several magical fireworks that spelled out, "Will you go out with me?" then appeared in front of her. Naturally, she couldn't say no to something like that, and Rainbow Dash doesn't regret a second of it.

"It was so corny," Dash said.

"But it worked, didn't it?"

"Yeah." She sighed. "Can you take Tank for a day or two? I got called to stop some weather problems in Manehattan, so I've got to be away for a little."

"Gladly," Storm agreed.

Pinkie came back and set two cupcakes on the table, one for each. Storm's was just plain vanilla with white frosting, while Rainbow's was chocolate with Rainbow colored frosting.

They ate happily, then trotted out the door. "I assume I'll be receiving payment for pet-sitting?" Storm asked.

"How about this," Dash said, then kissed him on the cheek. Storm's wings flared out.

"Good enough," Storm said in a daze.

"Sorry I've gotta cut this short, but the problems are insane in Manehattan," Dash apologized.

"What's going on over there to need reinforcements?" Storm asked in a joke.

"Let me ask you this: Is it normal for it to be snowing and raining in a checker pattern?"

"No... You might want to get over there."

She took off. "Love you!" She exclaimed, and took off flying at top speed.

Storm sighed, and flew towards Rainbow's cloud home. He picked up Tank, and teleported back to his house.

Life was good for Equestria's most powerful mage.

He knew he would just get more and more powerful, and not be able to stop it. The air was positively filled with magic, and Storm's power was just increasing with each day.

He set Tank on the ground to meander, and took out his book. It was just history, but the first-hoof accounts of Celestia herself was a good read.

«{[()]}»

Meanwhile, Scootaloo was flying back to her house for supper. Everypony likes a daisy sandwich. Storm had healed her disorder once more, much to the amazement of her parents and doctors.

She landed outside, and pushed open the door. She sat down at the table, where her parents had happy looks on their faces. They had lit a candle in the center of the table, which the family had found to add a sort of liveliness to the room.

"Scootaloo, we have great news!" Her mother said.

"What?" Scootaloo asked. News was rare in her house.

"I got the job!" Her dad exclaimed. "I appealed to Rainbow Dash, and she gave me a position in Weather Patrol! Granted it took a little convincing from her coltfriend, but still!"

"That's great, Dad," Scootaloo said drearily. She didn't really care. This world was pretty much the same as the last one, but now, only her mother was there to spend time with her.

"We figured you would be that way," Her mom said. "That's why we figured we'd tell you the other thing now."

Two announcements in one day. "What?"

"You're getting a little sister!" Her mother exclaimed. "Or brother."

Scootaloo was stunned. She was going to be an older sister. Her face broke into a wide grin. "Yes!"

Her parents smiled while Scootaloo cheered. Then it happened in seconds.

The candle's flame began to flare up, getting bigger and bigger the more excited Scootaloo got. Soon, it was a big a beach ball.

Scootaloo opened her eyes, and immediately freaked out. Her father had gotten a bucket of water, and proceeded to throw it on the flames.

Though the family was stunned, the fire was out. Scootaloo, however, knew one thing.

She would have a Conduit to see.

A/N: So, yeah. The story's over, and the end was a start-up to my next story. By the way, if any of you would like to use Conduism in a fic, let me know! I loved writing this, even if not everyone liked it. Write on, fellow writers!


End file.
